Natural Sleep Aid Recommendations?

Derek Thille wrote:I don't go into any real methods, but the thread (and some discussion of it) have led me to add some comments.

First, the medical professional in the house notes that taking external melatonin (like many other supplements) will lead to downregulation of natural internal production, so coming off it can lead to a period of adjustment.  That's why the medical community advocates use for things like jetlag to help you adjust to the different daylight cycle than your body is attuned to.  It is used in hospital - her explanation is that some patients insist on something to help them sleep and melatonin among the mildest things they have that can be used.  Of course, it makes sense that sleep would be disrupted when one has a medical issue and is in a different environment with noises / lights / odours / etc than we are used to.

I've gotten to a point of being frustrated with light.  The blue light produced by electronics (which includes LED lights) interferes with our brain's natural ability to slow down and get to a rest state to allow sleep.  I can't say that it has made a significant difference yet, but earlier this month I got new glasses and along with them, I got blue-blocking clip-ons that I wear most of the evening.  For those without prescription glasses, there are blue-blocking glasses available.  Part of my frustration includes the fact that all the street lights in our area have been downgraded to LED lights.  Yes, they use less electricity, but I doubt the city and utility have done an analysis on what impact it has.  Here in Winnipeg, walking the dog in the dark hours of day is almost like a bluish daylight with hard shadows abounding.  Grrrr....

Another thing to consider is bioindividuality.  I haven't gone deep on this concept but it makes sense to me that we are all different and react differently to situations / stimuli / nutrients / etc.  In my mind, it helps to explain why some folks do well on a vegan diet and improve their health while others do the same on a carnivore diet (and both have medical professionals backing them up, although they may just have some financial interest).  To me this explains why someone gets groggy with a particular input (say Gravol as an example) while others are completely unphased by it.

I forget all the details of the routine noted, but I recall one fellow talking about sleeping better by going to bed tired.  It sounds obvious, but he advocated significant exercise prior to going to bed to physically exhaust himself.

As we age, She Who Must Be Obeyed and I seem to be having more difficulty getting to sleep and staying there.  There have been some medical issues (and the associated medications / procedures) that have impacted that.  We are overdue for a new mattress...ideally we should get one so that we notice the other moving less.  One of my to do list items is to address the aforementioned LED streetlights streaming into our bedroom with more appropriate window coverings.  One challenge is settling brains...I think I finally have it through to her to not bring up something big / deep with me before bed if possible.  

I think there's a lot in this thread that makes sense...to address an issue, it is better to get to a root cause and work on improving that than simply looking for the next thing to take that may help.

Oh, one thing that helped (probably both of us, but definitely her) was my weight loss.  I'm about 30 lbs lighter than I was in the spring of 2021 when I started addressing it.  I'm told I snore a lot less now...that probably implies I'm breathing better, but even with her hearing loss she notices the difference.

Dr Jack Kruse has a wealth of information and knowledge about this blue light also recently on podcasts with Danny Jones. ‘The sun is your best friend’ I don’t think he is supporting supplements.

I know, I know!

"Tim, you can't possibly think of posting a third comment about the benefits of tart cherry juice."

But here we are!

An observation from someone who decided to explore the vast array of tart cherry juice products from his local grocery.

You can get tart cherry juice that is cut with other things such as coconut water that taste a bit better than straight tart cherry juice. You can get tart cherry juice that originates from concentrate and it works all right.

The king, in my book, of tart cherry juice products for sleep is a product that is just straight up juice that is not from concentrate. Something about it seems to lead to the deepest sleep.

All three that I have tried work, and for sure tart cherry juice lives up to its name so people who are not a fan of the taste might consider the 'cut' stuff for better palatability but can expect the associated sleepy effects.

For the record, my wife who is not a Permie, was the one to encourage us to try out all of the different ones and she confirmed the different levels of sleep. I consider my own personal bias towards the least processed negated by her, mostly independent, verification due to her being a bit of a name-brand person (we all have our weaknesses). Don't tell her I wrote this, but she 'bullied' me a little when I brought the 'wrong' one home after we decided we like the one type.

Timothy Norton wrote:I know, I know!

"Tim, you can't possibly think of posting a third comment about the benefits of tart cherry juice."

But here we are!

An observation from someone who decided to explore the vast array of tart cherry juice products from his local grocery.

You can get tart cherry juice that is cut with other things such as coconut water that taste a bit better than straight tart cherry juice. You can get tart cherry juice that originates from concentrate and it works all right.

The king, in my book, of tart cherry juice products for sleep is a product that is just straight up juice that is not from concentrate. Something about it seems to lead to the deepest sleep.

All three that I have tried work, and for sure tart cherry juice lives up to its name so people who are not a fan of the taste might consider the 'cut' stuff for better palatability but can expect the associated sleepy effects.

I cut my tart cherry juice with vodka and some sugar...I don't actually juice the cherries, but do crush them a bit as part of the liqueur making process.  I won't claim it does anything for sleep, but everyone who's tried it really likes it so it's hard to keep on hand around here.