More than 300 million people are troubled by this issue! Why is "sleep freedom" so difficult?

Are you unable to fall asleep at night and wake up during the day?

Do you not want to sleep at all times except during bedtime?

Why do we suffer from insomnia?

Does snoring mean a sound sleep?

Why has it become so difficult to sleep well?

China is a country with a large population of people suffering from sleep disorders. Previously, a report released by the China Sleep Research Society showed that more than 300 million people had sleep disorders in 2021, and the incidence of insomnia in adults was as high as 38.2%. However, two years later, the sleep problems of Chinese people are still not optimistic.

When it comes to the reasons for insomnia, stress is a frequent word. "In modern society, the pace of life is fast, the work pressure is high, and there are many problems to think about. Thinking too much can easily lead to nervous tension, and once you are nervous, it is easy to fall asleep," said Sun Wei, director of the Department of Sleep Medicine at Peking University Sixth Hospital.

"Stress brings about emotions such as anxiety and depression. Emotions affect the secretion of hormones such as melatonin and the transmission of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, which ultimately manifests as sleep problems," said Zhang Chi, deputy director of the Psychological Quality Education Center of Beijing Jiaotong University and a popular science expert at the Chinese Mental Health Association.

The modern lifestyle of "light head and heavy feet" can also make it difficult to fall asleep at night. "Many people eat in a hurry during the day, so they tend to eat a big dinner or midnight snack to compensate themselves, and they still eat very late; or they have the habit of exercising at night when they don't have time to exercise during the day, and the night is still in a very bright light environment, which is not conducive to subsequent sleep activities." Yin Guoping, deputy chief physician of the Sleep Medicine Center of Beijing Tsinghua Chang Gung Hospital affiliated to Tsinghua University, analyzed, "Light, exercise, and diet are all timing factors that affect the human body's biological clock. Timing factors will affect the secretion of hormones and neurotransmitters, thereby interfering with sleep at night. Generally, we recommend that you should not eat except drinking water about three hours before going to bed. It is not recommended to do strenuous exercise after dinner. You can choose to do more soothing and relaxing activities such as walking."

Falling asleep but not sleeping well, the desire of "insomniacs" to have a good night's sleep is also faced with challenges such as fragmented sleep and early awakening. Yin Guoping explained that in the process of human evolution, melatonin began to be secreted when it was dark, increasing people's sleep tendency, but now even at very late hours, they can still be exposed to strong light stimulation.

First, it may lead to a decrease in melatonin secretion and shorten the secretion time. If the secretion is insufficient, the sleep time will also be shortened accordingly, making it easy to wake up in the middle of the night or wake up early.

Secondly, the amplitude of melatonin secretion decreases, and the difference between being awake and asleep becomes smaller. A slight movement may switch states, and the person will repeatedly go between being awake and asleep, resulting in insufficient sleep and fragmented sleep.

Respiratory arrest poses a risk of sudden death!

Some people think that snoring is a sign of a good sleep, but in fact, it may be a disease called sleep apnea syndrome, which not only affects the quality of sleep, but also has the risk of sudden death.

How can we find out whether we have this disease in time? Han Fang, director of the Sleep Center of Peking University People's Hospital, proposed three testing criteria:

The first is snoring so loud that it can be heard in the next room;

The second is uneven snoring. Normal snoring is light and even, but if it is apnea, the snoring may suddenly stop and reappear after a few dozen seconds.

The third is respiratory arrest, when the patient suddenly stops breathing while snoring, his face becomes purple and sweaty, and he immediately starts snoring again when he turns over. So if this kind of respiratory pause is found, the diagnosis is basically clear.

In addition to snoring, some people also love to dream when they sleep. Is loving to dream a sign of a good sleep?

Wang Jian, director of the Department of Psychological Sleep at Guang'anmen Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said that in fact, everyone dreams every night, some people can remember it, some can't. Those who remember it very clearly are the patients who don't have deep sleep.

Some people dream and feel groggy all night long, while others feel full of energy after only sleeping for four or five hours. Why is that?

Wang Jian said that whether you can get enough sleep for eight hours is not important, what is important is whether you get enough sleep for four to five sleep cycles. The sleep cycle goes from shallow to deep, then there is a REM sleep dream period, then from shallow to deep again, there is another REM sleep dream period, and after four to five cycles, people wake up.

Wang Jian summarized three "30 minutes":

The first stage: early insomnia, difficulty falling asleep, and the time interval from lying down to falling asleep is more than 30 minutes;

The second stage: mid-sleep insomnia, difficulty maintaining sleep, and the time interval from waking up to falling asleep again is more than 30 minutes;

The third stage: waking up early, waking up more than 30 minutes earlier than usual, and after waking up, not being groggy until dawn, but being alert until dawn.

If the above problems occur more than three days a week, and the sleep problems the night before lead to physical discomfort and impaired social function the next day, it can be called insomnia.

Can it really help people sleep well?

In order to improve insomnia, many people have tried countless methods, among which the most well-known is "melatonin", as well as some black-tech sleep devices, sleep-aiding aromatherapy, and so on.

Wang Jian, director of the Department of Psychological Sleep at Guang'anmen Hospital of the Chinese Academy of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said that many people misunderstand that melatonin is used to treat insomnia, but this is not the case. The pineal gland inside the human brain can produce melatonin on its own, so generally speaking, melatonin is sufficient. If there are temporary sleep problems, such as jet lag, you can take some melatonin temporarily. But if you have long-term insomnia, then melatonin is not recommended to improve it.

Many young people are keen to light a scented candle before going to bed or use a sleeping spray on their pillows. Does this help sleep? Wang Jian believes that sleep can only take place after the brain and body are suppressed. When you smell a fragrance you have never smelled before, it may make your brain more excited.