Getting a good night’s sleep is inarguably important for good health. The type of rest we can only get with sufficient restful sleep keeps us alert, energetic, and mentally clear during the day. Earlier this year I blogged about how good sleep helps weight loss.

Now there’s increasing evidence of a link between sleep deprivation and Alzheimer’s disease. The study involved measuring spinal fluid participants for the presence of a protein called “amyloid beta”. Plaques found in the brain of sufferers of Alzheimers disease are composed of mostly amyloid beta, so this is seen as a marker for the disease. The study showed that during prolonged sleep these protein levels dropped, and during prolonged wakefulness the levels rose.

Well over 20 million prescriptions a year are written for habit-forming sleep aids, such as Ambien in America. It’s clear that the problem of sleeplessness is a large one.

If you have not yet read my “tips for falling asleep” article, I encourage you to do so. It includes simple but powerful things you can do to help achieve restful sleep without all of the pitfalls of pharmaceutical sleep aids.

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