Poor quality sleep is the biggest health problem
Emphasizing that quality sleep is very important for mental and physical health, experts say that sleep is a basic need like eating and drinking. Prof. Nevzat Tarhan states that sleep rests both the body and the brain, and points out that it is firstly necessary to sleep in the dark in order to ensure sleep hygiene. Tarhan, who also made suggestions about lying styles, said that "The ideal lying position is lying on the right side. Since the heart is on the left, when you lean to the left, there is pressure on the heart. When tilted to the right, the heart works more comfortably. It is also easier to evacuate the stomach. It is not recommended to lie on the left side, especially for overweight and elderly people.”. Tarhan also warned that sleep apnea can cause a sudden heart attack.
Prof. Nevzat Tarhan: “The healthiest way is to sleep on your side”
President of Üsküdar University Prof. Nevzat Tarhan informed on the importance of quality sleep and sleep hygiene.
Sleeping patterns were disrupted by lamps and electricity
Stating that sleep hygiene is used in terms of preventive health, and cleanliness is hygiene, Tarhan said that sleep hygiene is important. Tarhan stated that "When it comes to sleep hygiene, information about how to sleep comes to mind so that sleep will be of good quality, efficient and protective. After the discovery of the lamp and electricity, our sleeping patterns were disrupted. The night was getting dark, and people had to sleep. The restorative effect of sleep manifested itself naturally. However, now the day and night have become mixed, the nights have become like day.".
Poor quality sleep is the biggest health problem!
Stating that many diseases occur in cases where sleep hygiene cannot be ensured, Tarhan said: "From premature aging to the disfunction in the immune system, from allergic diseases to forgetfulness, fatigue and many other diseases began to be seen. The fact that the immune system does not work well means that many hidden diseases in the body appear early. Therefore, poor quality sleep is the biggest health problem. The most important factor that disrupts sleep hygiene is the presence of light in the dark at night and exposure to light. At night, especially blue light suppresses sleep generators in the encephalitic wakefulness. Sleep in the brain cannot begin. Since sleep does not start, the brain also works at night. The restful effect of sleep does not occur.".
Sleep deprivation can cause schizophrenia
Underlining that sleep is a basic need like eating and drinking, Tarhan said that "There are experiments on sleep. They make the mice to stay awake for 6 weeks, and the mice develop stomach ulcers. The greatest torture for a person is to make them stay awake by constantly exposing them to high light. Accordingly, a condition called sleep deprivation syndrome arises. When fatigue substances accumulate in the brain, schizophrenia develops if there is a predisposition. Some symptoms appear that may be a precursor to Alzheimer's.".
The brain repairs itself during sleep...
Stating that sleep has two kinds of effects on the body, Tarhan said that "The first one is that it rests the body and removes the fatigue substances in the body. There are arteries, veins and lymph vessels in the brain. Lymph vessels clean all discharges and accumulations in the body. These waste substances accumulate in the vein, and from there they come to the liver. Then, destruction begins. It goes to the kidney, and then excretions begin. During the day, these substances accumulate, at night they are excreted during sleep. When the person does not sleep, fatigue substances accumulate. Then situations such as distraction or drowsiness appear. This is one of the most important causes of traffic accidents. Another effect of sleep is that it repairs the brain. During REM sleep, where there are rapid eye movements, the body and muscles relax, however, the brain is working, the brain repairs itself.".
Those who cannot fall asleep within 20 minutes should seek expert help
Prof. Nevzat Tarhan said that the region in the brain where serotonin is secreted during the day and melatonin is the same at night and stated that "Daylight suppresses melatonin secretion. If the person lies in the light, sleep is not deep because melatonin release is suppressed. The lack of deep sleep also disrupts sleep architecture. After falling asleep, the REM period begins, in which the brain rests, within 90 minutes at the latest. However, in depressed people, it can be up to 5-10 minutes because the brain is in need of rest. Of course, if a person is very tired during the day, one can reach to REM sleep in a short time, which is considered normal.".
Tarhan added that if a person cannot sleep within 20 minutes after going to bed, this situation is considered a disease and expert help should be consulted, and continued his remarks as follows:
"The melatonin secreted during sleep at night strengthens the immune system tremendously. Night trips, getting up and going to bed late cause the sleep period to shift. Melatonin is the brain's most powerful antioxidant. Vitamin B is also important in the production of melatonin. However, the most important thing is darkness. The blue light emitted by phones and computers disturbs sleep and impairs sleep quality. Yellow light is minimally partially harmless. However, the ideal is to sleep in complete darkness. Room temperature also affects sleep hygiene. If it is too hot or too cold, the quality of sleep will still deteriorate.".
There are many problems that affect the quality of sleep
Referring to the problems that cause sleep disorders and adversely affect sleep, Tarhan said: "There is an initial sleep disorder that we call initial insomnia. In this, the person falls asleep late. In maintainable sleep disorder, sleep is often interrupted. There is also termination sleep disorder, the person wakes up early in the morning and cannot sleep again. These are all sleep disorders. There is also a movement disorder in sleep. For example, some of them fall out of bed. Some have behavioral disorders, such as sleep wandering. Restless legs syndrome is very common. A person cannot sleep all night just because of the need to shake and rub the leg.".
Biological clock works according to the lunar clock
Stating that there is a great biological clock in the body, Tarhan said: "When we say the biological rhythm of the human being, we are actually talking about a period of 24.5 hours. The world clock is 24 hours, however, the brain's biological clock is indexed to 24.5 hours. Although a person lives in the world and is born, our brain clock works according to the moon clock. This biological clock also appears during women's menstrual periods. It is 28 days, not 30 because the hormones in the brain are secreted accordingly. The human brain is tuned to the lunar clock. The creator of human made our biological nature according to the moon clock. Human beings will be lazy if one works according to the world clock. It will not force it to get up early, it will not feel the need to whip, it will remain a living creature that eats and drinks and lies down. When it is 24.5 hours, the biological clock says 'sleep' and the world clock says 'do not sleep'. In such a situation, the body necessarily moves away from laziness. It stimulates our body biology. What this means is that the brain works for 24.5 hours, we have to stay awake for another half an hour every day.".
Sleep apnea can cause sudden heart attack and death
Emphasizing that sleep apnea is the factor that affects sleep the most, Prof. Nevzat Tarhan said that "Sleep apnea is the cessation of breathing during sleep. There are two types of sleep apnea. One is what we call obstructive sleep apnea, which is the cessation of breathing with obstruction of the nose and throat. The person wakes up suddenly in the night with deep breaths. Cessation of breathing at night is the cause of sudden heart attack and death. Sleep apnea is more common in people with high blood pressure, overweight and thick neck. Then there is brain-induced central sleep apnea. When there is apnea, the oxygen in the blood drops because the brain is unable to produce the command 'wake up, breathe'. A heart attack can result in subsistence or cardiac arrest. In this type of sleep apnea, a device is attached to the person. When the oxygen in the blood drops, the device automatically delivers oxygen to the brain.".
The healthiest thing is to lie on your right side
Stating that those who have sleep problems due to obstruction are recommended to tie tennis balls to their backs in order to prevent them from lying on their backs or face down, Tarhan said that "These people usually do not sleep on their sides. When a person has a tennis ball tied to their back, they have to lie on their side. When lying on its side, the nose also opens and there is no apnea. The ideal lying position is lying on the right. Since the heart is on the left, when you lean to the left, there is pressure on the heart. When tilted to the right, the heart works more comfortably. It is also easier to evacuate the stomach. It is not recommended to lie on the left side, especially for overweight and elderly people."
The bedroom should not be used to pass the time
Prof. Nevzat Tarhan concluded his remarks by listing the things that need to be done to improve the quality of sleep and stated that "It is important that the room is completely dark. It is necessary not to use stimulants such as caffeine in the evening and again not to do heavy sports in the late hours. Going to bed by emptying the mind when you go to bed makes it easier to fall asleep. Anxious thoughts and making plans for the next day will keep you awake. If the bedroom and bed are used to spend time other than sleeping, the brain cannot give the 'go to sleep' command. Therefore, it should only be used for sleep. The problem of teeth grinding also disrupts the quality of sleep, it is necessary to take precautions. The fact that the sleeping and waking times are the same allows the brain to give the sleep command when the time comes."
Üsküdar News Agency (ÜNA)