Lose Weight While You Sleep

Lose Weight While You Sleep

Did you know that insufficient sleep is seen to be directly associated with weight gain and obesity?   

So before you pay for that new gym membership to start off your 2020.   Consider giving yourself permission to sleep and commit some time and energy to improving your sleep quantity and quality by making some changes.

I am thinking if you are like me you have probably been enjoying the festive season and staying up later.  This can have a significant impact on our circadian rhythm / sleep cycle.

Disruption to this system and lack of sleep can affect our caloric intake and increase consumption of unhealthy foods.  Alterations in appetite regulation can also affect our hormone production and regulation  while promoting weight gain.1,2.

Following is a full list of effects of short sleep duration compiled from Bioconcepts Research.

Short sleep duration in humans has been shown to: 3

• Shift the balance of reward and impulse control toward enhanced reward and impaired executive functioning and impulse control

• Increase stress and activate the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal axis

• Decrease leptin levels

• Increase ghrelin levels

• Decrease Glucagon-like peptide-1 levels

• Increase the opportunity to eat

• Delay and enhance the endocannabinoid signaling pathway

Each of these pathways has been shown to increase food intake in human study participants.3

Additionally, while an unhealthy diet, obesity and poor sleep appear to be a vicious cycle, a recent systematic review and meta-analysis concluded short sleep as a causal factor driving obesity risk.4

It also doesn’t hurt to hydrate well, eat your greens, move your body, plan your meals, track your symptoms, snack smart, remove sugary triggers from your pantry and solidify your new health routine commitments with a friend. But perhaps getting your 7-8 hours of sleep a night could be a more relaxing approach to your new year and could prove to be a more effective weight loss tool in the long run.

If you are struggling with sleep here are some helpful tips to get you started.

Love Thy Health ARTICLE: Good sleep & How to Get it.

Make a time to see me to support you to find a cause for your sleep issues. To discuss herbal and supplemental interventions to support better sleep quality and quantity.

Christine Carley is a bachelor qualified naturopath, with a focus on women’s health and wellness. She passionately supports her clients with, fertility and IVF optimisation, menopause and hormonal health as well as gut health. She spent most of her early clinical practice working with people with chronic and complex autoimmune condition, whilst working in a clinic with cardiologist, psychologists, podiatrist and allied health professionals. She loves assisting those stress, anxiety, fatigue and sleep. She is a passionate health ambassador who takes a holistic, person centred approach to the wellness model of health.

Book an appointment or free online discovery call here: LOVE THY HEALTH or call 0409027221

*National and International Telehealth available

References

1. Isaac Smith, Katherine Saed, M.-P. S.-O. Sleep and food intake. in Sleep and Health (ed. Grandner, M. A.) 243–255 (Elsevier, 2019).

2. Kelly Glazer Baron, E. C. Sleep and healthy decision making. in Sleep and Health (ed. Grandner, M. A.) 359–369 (Elsevier, 2019).

3. Spaeth, A. M. Insufficient sleep and obesity. in Sleep and Health (ed. Grandner, M. A.) 189–201 (Elsevier, 2019).

4. Patrice L. Capers, Aaron D. Fobian, Kathryn A. Kaiser, Rohit Borah, and D. & B.Allison. A systematic Review and meta-Analysis of Randomised Controlled Trials of the impact of Sleep Duration on ADiposity and Components of Energy Balance. Obes. Rev. 9, 771–782 (2015).

Exposure to Toxic Smoke

I recently saw the article about the firefighters in the West Footscray factory fires, posted locally in WeFo. It really got me thinking about how sad it is that those who protect us in our community have had such exposure to toxic waste. They said they had literally breathed it in. It was unavoidable. They are now living with potentially un-diagnosed chronic conditions. I see people like this weekly in clinic. Often due to toxic exposure in their own homes and environments.

AGE ARTICLE - What Happen to us in West Footscray

The article really prompted me to think about when the fire first started… How did I react to protect my family?

The first thing I think about with toxic exposure is, remove to the offensive toxic item. Well in this situation the people needed to be removed. That didn’t happen. So If this is not possible or doesn’t happen, there is still a lot we can do to support our health.

The first thing I personally did was get started with some liver support. The liver is the main organ to detoxify the body of chemicals, medications and excess hormones among other thing. Anything really that we are exposed to, that the body doesn’t need in excess is, mainly detoxified by the liver. So we need to support this organ to do the amazing work it is capable of actually doing.

Herbs and supplements that can support the liver are…

A good quality B vitamin supplement - help with phase 2 detoxification and support the body to excrete them through other organs. They also support the nervous system in times of stress.

St Mary’s Thistle or Silymarin - is known for its liver support and detoxification qualities.

Vitamin C - is essential for your immune system which may be suffering post exposure and regrowth of new cells.

When taking anything it is important to ensure it doesn’t interact with your medications.

Detoxify the mind of all of the bad thinking about this is often ignored. In reality we cant always stop these exposures from happening. It is important to work through these feelings in a helpful way. My family and with many of my clients we use The Work of Byron Katie for this. You may benefit from speaking to a good friend, your psychologist or someone on a hotline. 131114 - Lifeline 1300 22 4636 - Beyond blue There are many people to choose from to talk to here: Health - Mental health help lines

I lived with an un-diagnosed chronic health condition for many years due to toxic exposure and trauma. So I can say from personal experience. There is hope! Now I live totally pain free after years of chronic pain.

There is hope and so much you can do. Please don't feel like this is impossible.

Christine x

Here are some articles about detoxification you may find helpful…

Which Detox Suits You

10 Cleansing Tips for the Holiday Season

The Number One Principle for Health and Why Self Care is So important

Good Sleep & How to Get it

Christine Carley is a bachelor qualified naturopath, with a focus on women’s health and wellness. She passionately supports her clients with, fertility and IVF optimisation, menopause and hormonal health as well as gut health. She spent most of her early clinical practice working with people with chronic and complex autoimmune condition, whilst working in a clinic with cardiologist, psychologists, podiatrist and allied health professionals. She loves assisting those stress, anxiety, fatigue and sleep. She is a passionate health ambassador who takes a holistic, person centred approach to the wellness model of health.

Book an appointment or free online discovery call here: LOVE THY HEALTH or call 0409027221

*National and International Telehealth available