Sleep and Sports

In an article by Kate Robards, she pointed out several instances where sufficient sleep was believed to contribute to athletic success. Meeta Singh, a sleep doctor, has worked with the Nationals since 1917 to improve their sleep routines. Together they have focused on creating better sleep schedules and rethinking travel arrangements to prioritize a good night’s sleep. She wrote, “It’s not just baseball players who recognize that sleep is key to achieving peak performance. Representing a wide variety of sports, athletes such as Usain Bolt, Maria Sharapova, Michael Phelps, Steph Curry and Lindsey Vonn . . . have opened up about their sleep habits.” So, yes. Sufficient amounts of quality sleep are being linked with athletic success. http://sleepeducation.org/news/2019/11/12/is-sleep-the-secret-to-athletic-success

Leep and Teenagers

Sleep plays a critical role for everyone, but especially for teenagers. It impacts their health, mental set, grades, and and doing well in sports. Studies have linked electronics with sleep deprivation. An increased amount of screen time throughout the day has been linked to insomnia and symptoms of depression in adolescents. This can include social messaging, web surfing, watching TV, and gaming, in addition to using the internet for schoolwork. The presence of electronic devices in the lives of human beings—teenagers and athletes included—is here to stay. Therefore, success strategies include understanding the important of sleep to performance and developing habits that provide the appropriate balance between sleep and wakefulness.

Sleep-Athletic Link

What’s this about sleep being linked with success in athletics? I’ve read that sleep is independently linked with longevity, but athletic endeavors? Bottom line: sufficient sleep for brain is way more important than many would believe. And, yes, studies are beginning to link adequate amounts of sleep with how successful an individual is athletically. Short sleep duration of less than seven hours per night is associated with a greater likelihood of developing obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, frequent mental distress, reduced athletic performance, and even a shortened life. There are some interesting pieces to this puzzle. For example, athletic performance appears to be best in the evening when one’s core body temperature is highest. On the other hand, training exercises done late at night interferes with the brain’s circadian rhythm. This can make it more difficult to fall asleep and, depending on when you get up in the morning, can actually result in insufficient sleep.

OUtgrowing Sleepwalking

I learned a lot about sleepwalking from your recent blogs. My mother says I outgrew sleepwalking—which I did for about 5 years during early childhood. What does that mean?

It means that sometimes sleepwalking in childhood does not continue into adulthood. The reason for this is unclear. As I mentioned earlier in a blog, studies revealed that all of the sleepwalkers in the family studied had a specific genetic code that the non-sleepwalkers did not possess. Those individuals with the specific genetic code had a 50% chance of passing it on to the next generation. The mutated gene appears to be located in chromosome 20 but further studies are needed to identify the exact location of the gene in chromosome 20. The studies also noted that individuals who were sleepwalkers in childhood did not always continue as adult sleepwalkers—that is, they outgrew sleepwalking just as you did. Studies continue as some believe this means several other genes may be involved beyond the one mutant gene located in chromosome 20. All interesting . . . 

Adult Sleepwalking, 13

Results of Dr. Dauvilliers’ research:

     22.8 percent of sleepwalkers studied presented with nightly episodes

     43.5 percent presented with weekly episodes.

     58 percent had a positive history of violent sleep related behaviors was found in 58 percent

     17 percent with violent sleep-related behaviors had experienced at least one episode involving injuries to the sleepwalker or to the bed partner that required medical care.

The injuries that were reported related to sleep walking included, bruises, nose bleeds, and fractures (one participant had sustained multiple fractures and serious head trauma after jumping out of a third-floor window.” According to the lead researcher, “Sleepwalking is an underdiagnosed condition that may be clearly associated with daytime consequences and mood disturbances leading to a major impact on quality of life … The burden of sleepwalking in adults needs to be highlighted and emphasized.”

Adult Sleepwalking, 7

Sleepwalking does tend to run in families. In addition, some individuals seem to be more susceptible than others although contributing factors for this have not specifically been identified. A study published in the British Journal of Psychology concluded that a first-degree relative of a sleepwalker is ten times more likely to sleepwalk than the rest of the population. A study published in the journal Neurology concluded that twins are more likely to sleepwalk than non-twin siblings. Back to the original question, my brain’s opinion is that adults who sleepwalk need to be evaluated by health care professionals competent in the field, especially since additional information is being identified related to this potentially serious that may induce violent behaviors and affect health-related quality of life.

Adult Sleepwalking, 6

Sleepwalking is a common parasomnia affecting up to four percent of adults. It involves complex behaviors that occur during arousals from non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep. During an episode of sleepwalking the brain is partially awake, resulting in complex behaviors, and partially in NREM sleep with no conscious awareness of actions. Triggering factors that increased both the frequency and severity of episodes were reported in 59 percent of the study participants. These factors , related mainly to:

    - stressful events

    - strong positive emotions

    - sleep deprivation

    - drug or alcohol intake

    - intense evening physical activity

Such factors tend to promote increased slow wave sleep (SWS) and NREM sleep instability.