Page 26 - Dainfern Precinct Living 3 2021
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HEALTH & WELLNESS
Reduce 6. SLEEP AND • Turn off household lights, install
stress with MELATONIN f.lux on your computer and wear
meditation Deep sleep is Uvex glasses for two hours
necessary for before bed. These block out blue
optimal functioning light from your environment.
of your blood-brain Blue light suppresses your body’s
barrier. Sleep production of melatonin.
restriction has been • Go to bed at the same time every
shown to impair the night.
functioning of the • Don’t eat for 3 hours before going
blood-brain barrier to sleep.
and increase its • Completely black out your room
permeability, so with block-out curtains and wear a
make sure you get sleep mask.
at least seven hours
of high-quality, 7. REDUCE EXPOSURE TO
restorative sleep ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS
every night. (EMFs)
An increasing amount of research
Supplementing with is showing that radiofrequency
melatonin can also electromagnetic fields emitted from
help. Melatonin is a Wi-Fi, laptops, and cell phones
hormone released can negatively affect the brain and
by your pineal produce widespread neuropsychiatric
gland, a small effects including depression. It’s an
gland in your brain. inconvenient truth that needs to be
Melatonin helps talked about, rather than downplayed,
control your sleep ignored and dismissed.
4. AVOID ALCOHOL and wake cycles (circadian rhythm),
Not surprisingly, alcohol and and adequate levels of melatonin are One way that radiofrequency EMFs
acetaldehyde – a by-product of necessary to fall asleep quickly and may be causing neuropsychiatric
alcohol metabolism – can contribute sleep deeply throughout the night. effects is by contributing to a ‘leaky
to leaky brain. Research shows that brain’.
they can weaken and damage the Research also shows that melatonin
blood-brain barrier, and the oxidative can stabilise the blood-brain barrier Several studies have found that EMFs
stress that results from excess alcohol and prevent damage caused by emitted from cell phones increase the
consumption can result in blood-brain traumatic brain injury. permeability of the brain-blood barrier,
barrier dysfunction. This can then and this increased permeability
lead to neuro-inflammatory disorders. Other than taking melatonin, here are may lead to the accumulation of
some things you can do to maintain brain tissue damage and cognitive
5. REDUCE STRESS your circadian rhythm and maximise impairment.
It’s recommend that you try to do the quality of your sleep:
something every day to manage • Supplement with magnesium, zinc Here are some initial steps you can
your stress. Research suggests that and collagen before bed. take to monitor your exposure:
acute stress damages the blood-brain • Lie on an acupressure mat for • Get an EMF meter to determine
barrier and extreme stress has been 10 minutes before bed. your exposure to electric, magnetic
shown to increase inflammation and
the permeability of the blood-brain
barrier.
Luckily, normalising stress can allow
you to repair the blood-brain barrier.
The most effective way to significantly
and permanently reduce your stress
and anxiety is neurofeedback, which
is advanced, guided meditation. If you
can’t access neurofeedback, taking
up a daily meditation practice is an
excellent idea.
Regular massage, acupuncture,
eye movement desensitisation and
reprocessing (EMDR), emotional
freedom techniques (EFT), heart-rate
variability (HRV) training, and using
an acupressure mat are other options. Get at least seven
Some supplements that can hours of sleep
help you with stress include zinc, every night.
magnesium, ashwagandha and
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phosphatidylserine. 24
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