Effects of Cortisol and Sleep
Sleep!! How many hours do get a night??
One topic we really like to cover is the effect on your cortisol levels.
Cortisol is controlled by a complex system called the hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis. This HPA axis involves the hypothalamus (section of the brain) and pituitary gland (another part of the brain, and adrenal glands (sit right on top of your kidneys)
The way it all works. Your hypothalamus send messages to your pituitary gland to then create what’s called corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH).
CRH then stimulate the pituitary to release a hormone into the bloodstream called adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH).
ACTH travels through the bloodstream to the kidneys, to then produce CORTISOL!
Now cortisol is our stressor hormone. This fella is what tells us to fight in a high stress situation. Now cortisol issues can be of a plethora of issues such as lack of melatonin production, trauma, poor gut health, high caffeine intake, lack of oxytocin, lack of nutrients and the list goes on
For the sake of today’s info- we are talking sleep
Your sleep cycle follows a Circadian Rhythm. This is the 24hr period where we go from waking up, daily activities, sun sets, night routine, bed then sleep. Cortisol production is typically meant to drop its production come midnight, then rises typically an hour prior to waking (dependant on your body clock rhythm)
Should we disrupt our sleeping routines, you can be looking at issues such as slow metabolism, inflammation, slow healing response, insomnia, anxiety and depression, should your cortisol not have a consistent pattern to follow.
So how can we ensure that we don’t fall into the trap of the rising and falling of cortisol, and keep the hormone happy? Simple!!
Establish a night routine. Reduce lights, have a balanced dinner, consume warm to hot drinks, get to bed at the same time each night
Meditation! Learn to control your mind. Understand breathing techniques, slow your heart rate, control your thoughts (easier said than done i know…)
Consume high magnesium concentrated foods. Now lots of people opt for magnesium supplements, HOWEVER we really need to be careful as there are a lot of magnesium supplements out there that contain stimulants. These stimulants could be Thiamine (B1), Taurine (amino sulfonic acid), and more. Whilst these are all naturally occurring vitamins in the body, they are stimulants for the brain. So, check those ingredient lists and try to aim for a 100% magnesium supplement.
Reduce Caffeine intake! Now if there is anyone in this world that LOVES their caffeinated beverages, it’s me, however it’s not particularly constructive for my health. Its well known that caffeine is a stimulant. It’s going to increase your cortisol so that your body can keep firing throughout the day. However, a suggestion might be to reduce your intake to two cups a day and nothing post 2pm. Whilst it only takes 10-30 minutes for caffeine to hit the bloodstream, it can take up to 6-10 hours for it to leave the blood stream. Now I think its great that this trusty friend doesn’t want to leave our side, however we do need our sleep hormone Melatonin to jump on in, start producing, so that we can get our beauty rest. Though this can’t happen should the caffeine be surging our cortisol.
All in all, hope is not lost. If your cortisol levels are higher than your av-er-age bear (if you get that reference, we are officially best friends), then there are always ways to work around it, and get your body back into tip top performance.