June 17, 2019

AMA With Sleep Expert Dr. Matthew Walker: Strategies For Sleeping More, Sleeping Better, and Avoiding Things That Are Disrupting Sleep – The Peter Attia Drive

Check out The Peter Attia Drive Episode Page & Show Notes

Support The Peter Attia Drive here for access to the full AMA (these notes were taken on the publically available portion of this AMA).

Key Takeaways

• Sleep trackers (like the Oura Ring) are accurate when it comes to determining total time awake vs. time in non-REM sleep vs. time in REM sleep
  • They’re not so accurate when it comes to disguising between light non-REM sleep vs. deep non-REM sleep
• Avoid eating simple carbs too close to bedtime as they tend to raise your core body temperature
  • (In order to fall asleep, you need to drop your core body temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Fahrenheit)
• For optimal sleep, avoid exercising within two hours of going to bed
• Adequate sleep increases your motivation to exercise, your peak muscle strength, your ability to respire and expel carbon dioxide, your time to physical exhaustion, and your ability to sweat
• Sleep deprivation causes an increase in the hunger hormone (ghrelin) and a suppression of the satiety hormone (leptin)

Intro

• Dr. Matthew Walker (@sleepdiplomat) is the author of Why We Sleep and professor of neuroscience and psychology at the University of California, Berkeley
  • Check out Dr. Walker’s website
• Check out the Podcast Notes from Matthew’s three-part interview with Peter:
  • Matthew Walker, Ph.D., on Sleep: Dangers of Poor Sleep, Alzheimer’s Risk, Mental Health, Memory Consolidation, and More – The Peter Attia Drive (Part I)
  • Dr. Matthew Walker on Sleep: Heart Disease, Cancer, Sexual Function, and the Causes of Sleep Disruption – The Peter Attia Drive (Part II)
  • Dr. Matthew Walker on Sleep: The Penetrating Effects of Poor Sleep From Metabolism to Performance to Genetics, and the Impact of Caffeine, Alcohol, THC, and CBD on Sleep – The Peter Attia Drive (Part III)

How accurate are sleep trackers (like the Oura Ring)?

• Purchase an Oura Ring using our link for a $50 discount applied at checkout
• Think of sleep tracking on three levels:
  • Level 1 – Determining total sleep time vs. total time awake
  • Level 2 – Determining total time awake vs. time in non-REM sleep vs. time in REM sleep
  • Level 3 – Determining total time awake vs. time in light non-REM sleep vs. time in deep non-REM sleep vs. time in REM sleep
• Sleep trackers tend to fail around level 3
  • HOWEVER – they’re good at allowing you to observe deviations from your baseline numbers
    • For example – you might observe that drinking alcohol prior to bed reduces the amount of time you normally spend in deep sleep
  • Therefore – don’t judge yourself against your specific deep sleep/REM sleep/light sleep numbers
    • Instead – assess your sleep based on deviations your norms

Eating Before Bed

• Aim to stop eating ~3 hours before bed
• Avoid eating simple carbs too close to bedtime as they raise your core body temperature
  • (In order to fall asleep, you need to drop your core body temperature by 2 to 3 degrees Fahrenheit)
• But in general – “Don’t go to bed to full and don’t go to bed too hungry”
  • If you need to eat before bed, lean more towards higher protein meals and away from simple sugars

Avoid Exercise Within 2 Hours of Bedtime

• Be careful with exercising too close to bedtime as it raises your core body temperature and can hinder sleep
  • For optimal sleep, avoid exercising within two hours of your bedtime
• In addition – exercise changes your hormone profile (specifically your epinephrine, adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol levels) in an unfavorable way when it comes to sleep

How Sleep Aids Exercise and Physical Performance

• “It’s not just that exercise helps sleep, sleep profoundly helps exercise”
• Adequate sleep increases your motivation for exercise, your peak muscle strength, your ability to respire and expel carbon dioxide, your time to physical exhaustion, and your ability to sweat
  • It also reduces injury risk
    Sleep and Appetite Regulation

Sleep and Appetite Regulation

• “When you are sleep deprived, essentially what the brain receives is a signal that is not dissimilar to starvation. It releases a cascade of hormones that changes your appetite profile – you’ll want to eat more and you’ll be less satisfied with your food”
  • “Human beings seem to be the only species that will deliberately deprive themselves of sleep for no apparent reason”
    • The only other time sleep deprivation is observed in nature is when animals are under conditions of starvation
      • Why? – It’s essentially a signal for the animal to start foraging in a larger area for food, and in order to do this – they’ll need to stay awake for longer hours
  • Therefore – When you’re sleep deprived, the brain essentially thinks it’s under conditions of starvation
    • The hunger hormone (ghrelin) is increased and the satiety hormone (leptin) is suppressed

Additional Notes

• Sleep deprivation leads to elevated levels of cortisol (the stress hormone) which only further impairs sleep
  • “What you should not have if you’re looking for good sleep is a high level of cortisol”
• Blue light exposure at night prevents the pineal gland from releasing adequate levels of melatonin (which is a signal to your body that it’s time for sleep)
  • To reduce blue light exposure, wear blue light blocking glasses 2-3 hours before bed