Sleep Deprived? Recipe for Health

What You Need to Know Before You Crash From Sleep Deprivation

For many people, sleep is a gift that just doesn’t keep on giving…and missing regular visits to dreamland is a recipe for a sack-full of detrimental health problems

Ever see someone who is routinely sleep deprived and doesn’t get enough sleep?

They’re groggy…say silly, incoherent things…sway a little…and maybe even speak in tongues.

They might appear drunk or “on something.”

Truth is they’re probably not on anything…they’re actually off something – sleep.

Though we might get a kick out of seeing someone nodding off at their desk or catching them falling into a dream-like state at the most inopportune moments – it is certainly no laughing matter. Sleep deprivation is very dangerous and can lead to a shocking array of health problems you’d probably never associate with a lack of Zzzs.

Whether it’s done voluntarily or not, sleep deprivation is nothing to bat a heavy eyelid at.

Sleep apnea, insomnia, and stress can ruin a perfectly good life

There are many health problems associated with not getting enough sleep. It starts with mental disorders and – if left “awake” – can even lead to death.

Lack of sleep has a very negative impact on your brain, your hormones, and even your heart. In fact, it all starts with your body’s inability to properly manage blood sugar levels. That’s right. Sleep deprivation can lead – very easily, I might add – to diabetes.

Studies have shown that reducing the RNA (Recommended Nightly Allowance) of shut-eye to 4 hours a night, “Can reduce insulin sensitivity in most tissues by up to 20 – 25%,” according to NaturallyEngineered.com. Couple this with our Westernized, processed, sugar-N-carbs diet and you’re looking at a recipe for diabetes.

And it doesn’t stop there…

A review by Case Western University and Harvard Medical School uncovered a direct link between weight gain and obesity to lack of sleep. The results of a University of Chicago study showed that not enough restful sleep can change your body’s secretion schedule of specific hormones. This, unfortunately, leads to increased appetite, not feeling full after a meal and ruins the natural response to sugar intake.

Here are the top 3 conditions that lead to and perpetuate sleep deprivation:

Sleep Apnea

In the case of sleep apnea, breathing is either slowed or paused as to cause the oxygen supply to be cut off. Depending on severity, this can last for a few seconds to a minute or two and can strike somewhere between 5 and 30 times in a single hour. Apnea lasting for 3 minutes can result in permanent brain damage or death if proper breathing patterns are not restored within 4 – 5 minutes. This condition can go on for years undetected. The sufferer experiences sleepiness, lethargy and severely lowered performance during the day – the cause of which often goes unrealized.

Insomnia

There are 3 types of insomnia:

1. Transient, lasting less than a week;
2. Acute, lasting less than a month;
3. Chronic, lasting more than a month.

Each case is marked by sleep patterns that are non-existent, non-restorative and related to stress or depression. Symptoms can include double vision, hallucinations, muscle fatigue, and mental disorders. Chronic, untreated insomnia can lead to heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, and permanent brain damage.

Stress

Although stress is not widely recognized as a sleep disorder, it brings on an inability to find restful slumber or sometimes, get any sleep at all. So for so many reasons, the lower your stress levels, the healthier you’ll be.

If you suffer from any of these disorders, then you may think repaying your sleep debt is hopeless

Any one of these disorders can cloud your mind, make you unable to focus or make decisions, and – as you’ve seen – can cause any number of serious diseases that lead to death if not properly treated.

In fact, a University of Pennsylvania study had participants cut their nightly visit with Sandman down to around 6 hours a night for 2 weeks. After a couple days, the volunteers noticed only a slight air of sleepiness during the day, but tests showed a gradual drop in cognitive functions and motor skills. By the end of the 2-week test period, they were as impaired as someone who was awake for 48 hours straight.

Sleep deprivation is also known as a sleep debt and when you’re suffering with it, it can feel as unsettling as owing money to a loan shark named Tommy No-Nose.

But, did you know that these dreaded sleep disorders can easily be “knocked out” with proper diet and nutrition?

So, your only alternative is to start preparing meals to keep you at peak health and allow you the pleasure of recharging your batter for about 8 or 9 hours a night.

Here are some meal ideas and recipes to get you started.

Lentil Soup[i]

What you’ll need:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1/2 cup finely chopped carrot
• 1/2 cup finely chopped celery
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 pound lentils, picked and rinsed
• 1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes
• 2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground toasted cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground grains of parade

What to do:

Place the olive oil into a large 6-quart Dutch oven and set over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion, carrot, celery and salt and sweat until the onions are translucent, approximately 6 to 7 minutes. Add the lentils, tomatoes, broth, coriander, cumin and grains of paradise and stir to combine. Increase the heat to high and bring just to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook at a low simmer until the lentils are tender, approximately 35 to 40 minutes. Using a stick blender, puree to your preferred consistency. Serve immediately.

What was that about turkey?

Here’s a recipe to get all the belt-busting-nap-making-power of Thanksgiving day, without waiting all day.

Herb-Roasted Turkey Breast[ii]

What you’ll need:

• 1 whole bone-in turkey breast, 6 1/2 to 7 pounds
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
• 2 teaspoons dry mustard
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary leaves
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage leaves
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons good olive oil
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 cup dry white wine

What to do:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Place the turkey breast, skin side up, on a rack in a roasting pan.

In a small bowl, combine the garlic, mustard, herbs, salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice to make a paste. Loosen the skin from the meat gently with your fingers and smear half of the paste directly on the meat. Spread the remaining paste evenly on the skin. Pour the wine into the bottom of the roasting pan.

Roast the turkey for 1 3/4 to 2 hours, until the skin is golden brown and an instant-read thermometer registers 165 degrees F when inserted into the thickest and meatiest areas of the breast. (I test in several places.) If the skin is over-browning, cover the breast loosely with aluminum foil. When the turkey is done, cover with foil and allow it to rest at room temperature for 15 minutes. Slice and serve with the pan juices spooned over the turkey.

In the end, there was…

No sleepy meal would be complete (really – what meal would?) without a nice, healthy dessert. Here is a special recipe that polishes off your dinner nicely and gets you ready to jump into the arms of Hypnos (he was the Greek God of Dreams, if you didn’t know that)!

Curried Banana with Rum Raisin Mascarpone[iii]

What you’ll need:

• 1/2 stick butter
• 4 ripe bananas, split lengthwise
• 2/3 cup dark rum
• 1 teaspoon curry powder
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 tablespoons honey, plus 2 tablespoons
• 1 (8-ounce) package mascarpone
• 2 whipped egg whites
• 4 tablespoons golden raisins, soaked in 1/4 cup rum to soften
• 2 tablespoons chopped pecans

What to do:

Melt the butter in a pan over medium low heat. Add the bananas, rum, curry, cinnamon and 2 tablespoons of honey. Cover the pan for about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Next, mix the mascarpone and whipped egg white in a large bowl. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of honey and the rum-soaked raisins. Combine with the curried bananas and top with pecans.

Of course, you don’t have to soak the raisins in rum – it just plumps them up nicely and you can rinse them off after they “beef up.”

Keep it real…real healthy and you’ll be good as new in no time!

In our country, Big Pharma continues to churn out and market dangerous drugs that are supposed to allow you to sleep and correct the harmful effects caused by sleep deprivation. But, these drugs do nothing to cure your condition. They only work to make you a loyal customer…out of Ambien? Just hit them up for another script and they’ll be glad to take your money.

Isn’t it so much better to wipe away any illness, disease or sleep disorder with natural methods that are tested and make you feel really good to the core? Of course it is! In this case, all you have to do is follow our advice this month. Start by feeling your Circadian rhythm; it’s nature’s way of telling you when to sleep and when to wake. Mother knows best and in her gardens are the secrets that unlock excellent health and peaceful, restful sleep for you tonight and every night.