I speak at many events where I have to tell everyone whom would be a perfect patient to refer to me. Although I am a general practitioner and I treat most health issues it can get confusing for people who don't know what I do. So many times I state that the perfect person to refer is anyone who can't sleep or get restful sleep. And everytime I get the same reaction of someone stating; "Well that is just about everyone." And believe it or not that is true, a post on the Harvard Health Publications stated that a survey resulted in 75% of the population have problems with sleep. http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health It went on to mention the Six reasons it is important to get a good restful night of sleep. One that I always bring up with patients with hypertension, the fact that the amount of and quality of sleep you get affects your blood pressure.
- Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation. In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.
- Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite.
- Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.
- Mood: Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness. Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do.
- Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.
- Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.
Acupuncture and Oriental medicine is able to help patients get deep restful sleep, thereby affecting their blood pressure. It also has a relaxing affect that affects the blood pressure rapidly and helps to effectively raise your immune response. The relaxing effects can help patients already on hypertensive medication to reduce that amount of medication necessary, when they work with an integrate health team of their medical doctor and their acupuncturist together. This team will be able to guide the patient their lifestyle modification, including diet, exercise, and meditation. For more information on the effects of Acupuncture on insomnia, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17631261. See my blog for more information on Alternative health and patient testimonials http://www.threelotusdragon.com/blog
