How many hours of sleep do you get each night? Women are notorious for functioning on way too little. Some even wear it as a badge of courage. It’s time to take note about the importance of sleep. But not just how much you get. The quality of the sleep you get now may help you survive breast cancer later.
The American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends that adults should sleep 7 or more hours per night on a regular basis to promote optimal health. Anything less, on a consistent basis, sets you up for poor health, and snoring, as a part of your sleep problem, can also affect your chances of surviving breast cancer.
Past study of the relationship between sleep and cancer survival in humans has been limited. But mouse models have shown that chronic sleep problems may contribute to accelerated tumor growth and shortened cancer survival. However, the latest study was a group comprised of 21,230 women diagnosed with a first primary invasive cancer during follow-up from the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), a longitudinal study of postmenopausal women.
The dangerous connection between sleep and cancer
The dangerous connection between sleep and cancer found in these women is not all that surprising: the adverse effect of poor sleep on inflammatory pathways may be a contributing factor in the development and progression of cancer. Inflammation is the root of disease, and not only can it play a part in making your body more prone to cancer, years of poor sleep and snoring prior to going through cancer can weigh heavily on your survival outcome. Amanda Phipps, the lead author of the study, and Assistant Professor in Epidemiology at the University of Washington, explains it:
“We were surprised to see that snoring, especially in combination with short sleep duration, had such a strong association with cancer survival for certain cancer types. To our knowledge, snoring has not previously been evaluated in relation to cancer survival, but our results suggest that it could be an important consideration.”
But she also adds this very important statement:
“Unlike so many things that can impact cancer risk and cancer prognosis, sleep is something that an individual can potentially control. Our results provide yet another reason to make quality sleep a priority.”
Could you agree more? Much of what goes into my body, as well as what I do with my body — in regard to exercise — is in consideration of keeping it healthy and disease-free. Now, sleep has just moved up several notches on my “how to avoid cancer” list.
Snoring can be difficult to tackle. If you snore due to sleep apnea, and the CPAP machine is not working out for you, you may want to try other suggestions.
Tips for getting quality sleep
If you need help getting at least seven hours of quality sleep, the following tips may help:
- Set your sleep/wake cycle: Establish a set sleep and wake schedule. Research shows the optimal time to sleep is 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. In time, your body and mind will naturally adjust to the new cycle.
- No sugar or caffeine after 6:00 p.m.: Sugars and caffeine create short-term energy bursts that can make your mind race when you need to be sleeping. Not consuming any after 6 p.m. is preferable.
- No exercise or continuous physical activity after 7 p.m.: Exercising or engaging in laborious work late in the evening can stimulate the body making it harder to sleep. Try to exercise in the morning or afternoon if possible.
- Reduce anxiety and stress: Stress and anxiety are two of the most-reported reasons people lose sleep. At bedtime, try not to worry about things you cannot change.
- Ditch the devices: Do not keep a TV in your bedroom and leave smartphones, tablets, laptops, and computers elsewhere.
- Create the proper sleep space: Sleeping in a completely dark, quiet space is most conducive to restful sleep. Having a comfortable mattress and blankets also contributes to a more relaxing space.
- Use natural sleep aids: Supplements containing melatonin, valerian or chamomile can help relax you and lead to drowsiness.
Sweet dreams!
