Dr. Oz: Trouble Sleeping
Dr. Oz talked on his show today about how to get to sleep. He said there’s a sleep crisis out there. Many people are having trouble getting to sleep. Dr. Oz said the reason is cortisol.
Throughout the day, the stress of your job, family, and commute raise your stress hormone cortisol in your body. Crash dieting and drinking can also mess with your body chemistry and cause cortisol to rise.
But Dr. Oz said that cortisol can also be a great benefit to your body. It can improve your mood, boost your energy, and regulate blood sugar. If you cut your stress, your cortisol can start high in the morning and slowly lower throughout the day.
Dr. Oz: Eat Resistant Fiber in the Morning
Stressed out? Dr. Oz talked to an expert to find out how to lower you stress levels and relax at night, with tricks like a negative ion shower. (fdecomite / flickr)
How do we do this? Dr. Oz talked to Dr. Alan Christianson, author of The Adrenal Reset Diet, who talked about how we can end our sleep crisis. First, you need to change your morning routine.
If you start the day with a 1/2 cup of resistant fiber, you can have six to nine hours of your cortisol levels being where they should be. It will also cut down your cravings for sweets. One resistant fiber is peas. Just puree them and put them on your eggs.
You can also eat rolled oats, which is Dr. Christianson’s favorite. He also recommended added navy, cannelini, and northern beans to a smoothie. They’ll make the texture of your smoothie nicer and you won’t even taste them.
Dr. Oz: Orange Oil Reduces Stress
Morning commutes can trigger our cortisol levels to go up and down. Kristen had a rough morning drive. She’s raising a toddler, so getting out of the house is troublesome. Once she’s on the road, she’s constantly watching the clock and has a lot of anxiety about what’s happening around her.
Dr. Christianson suggested orange oil. Just smelling orange oil makes you more stress resilient. It’ll help prevent the stress from affecting your levels. Don’t apply it to your skin and don’t eat it. Just add it to a cotton bowl and set it on the dashboard and get a new one every morning. Don’t add it to your upholstery because that can harm the fabric.
Dr. Oz: Eat Basil at Lunch
At midday, have some basil in your lunch. Basil can help lower cortisol, but not too fast. This can help ease you from a high point of cortisol to a lower cortisol.
Dr. Oz: Eat Carbs at Dinner
Dr. Christianson recommended eating carbs at dinner to help raise blood sugar. If you have a blood sugar crash at night, your body raises your cortisol to increase your blood sugar. This is why Dr. Christianson recommends about 1 cup of cooked carbs like whole grain brown rice, legumes, vegetables, and quinoa.
Dr. Oz: Take a Negative Ion Shower
At night, take a negative ion shower. Moving water help release ions that make us relax and be more tired. They raise our mood. This just means taking a normal warm shower at night.
Dr. Oz: Dim Lights Before Bedtime
About a half hour to an hour before bedtime, dim the lights. This will also help relax you before sleep. This makes the brain think it’s time for bed.
Do you think these tips will help you sleep?
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