Big night out? Find out what your alcohol fuelled nights are doing to your shut eye.
What does alcohol actually do?
Alcohol limits REM sleep: Handbook of Clinical Neurology notes alcohol suppresses REM sleep - critical for dreaming. Dreams enable disassociation from unpleasant feelings, termed ‘unlearning’ by neuroscientist Francis Crick, explaining the correlation between alcohol and mood disorders such as depression.
Alcohol prevents deep sleep - increasing fatigue and lacklustre enthusiasm the next morning, clinical studies report alcohol heightens brain activity during the evening. This is problematic as deep sleep enables brain detoxification - removing neurotoxin beta amyloid which otherwise causes memory loss. Deep sleep also regenerates serotonin and dopamine - happiness hormones to enhance mood and alertness. This is exactly why after a night out, you lack motivation, feel low and crave comfort foods.
Alcohol exacerbates snoring, sleep apnea and sleep disturbances. Medical Clinics of North America highlights sedates muscles around the jaw and throat, which restricts airflow. As a result, you can’t breathe properly, and are more likely to wake.
What to do about it…
Enjoy alcohol free nights. Rather than restricting yourself, embrace (not tolerate) booze free living with yoga, movie nights, quiet dinners or visiting the family - quality time with quality people and alcohol doesn’t seem so important.
If you do drink, balance water with alcoholic drinks. Queen of hydration speaking here, it’s difficult to consume excessive alcohol if you’re constantly sipping on water.
