Which hormones influence our sleep? How do they affect our bodies? Can we influence them? This entry is about the most important sleep hormones and what effect a deficiency or excess can have on our body.
Recuperative sleep is of key importance for our health and our wellbeing. However, more and more people are suffering from sleep problems nowadays that can greatly compromise their everyday life. A frequently overlooked cause of sleep disturbances are hormones and their complex interactions in our body. In this blog entry, we would like to consider some hormones that influence our sleep and how we ourselves can consciously influence their balance.
Hormones play a central role in the regulation of our sleep-wake cycle. The human body produces a multitude of hormones that can influence sleep, including melatonin, cortisol, oestrogen, progesterone and testosterone. These hormones interact and are closely bound up with the circadian rhythm, the natural biological clock of our body.
Melatonin
is perhaps the most well-known sleep hormone. It is produced by the body during darkness and signals to our body that it is time to go to sleep. A lack of melatonin can lead to problems falling asleep and staying asleep. This lack can be caused by various factors, for example through exposure to light at night, irregular sleep habits or stress.
What has a positive influence on the melatonin balance?
- Correct nutrition
- Omega-3 and Omega-6 fatty acids
- Sleep hygiene
Cortisol
is a hormone associated with stress. It is normally released in the mornings and ensures that we feel awake and full of energy. If hormone production is disturbed, however, cortisol can be emitted at the wrong time, which can lead to sleep problems. Chronic stress can raise the cortisol level and disturb the sleep-wake cycle.
How can the cortisol level be lowered?
- Sport and exercise
- Healthy nutrition
- Avoiding alcohol and caffeine
- Planning breaks during the day
- Sufficient regular sleep
Hormones – the conductors of our life
Serotonin
intervenes strongly in our mental and spiritual wellbeing. If this hormone is missing, it can lead to anxiety and/or depression. These in turn lead to a lack of sleep, headaches or migraine. The amino acid tryptophan is important for influencing the serotonin level.
Which foods contain tryptophan?
- Nuts, e.g. cashew nuts
- Whole grains
- Oats
- Cheese such as Parmesan, Emmentaler and Edam
- Pulses such as lentils and soya beans
- Fish
- Eggs
A health hotel with an in-house doctor
As a 4-star health hotel in Carinthia, whose focus alongside burn-out prevention is healthy sleep, we offer our guests not only a restorative holiday in peaceful surroundings but also a source of information for all questions surrounding the topic of “healthy sleep”.
Apart from trained staff, our doctor Dr. Martin Ortner is available to assist you in the search for solutions to your sleep problems. Access to medical consulting right at the hotel is very much appreciated and made use of by our guests.