	Enliven your spirit to balance high blood pressure

Transcendental Meditation

Meditation and high blood

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Benefits of Proper Sleep

Habits

Benefits Transcendental

Meditation

Sleep deprivation and high blood pressure

Sleep deprivation is a common malady in our society. Sleep experts recommend going to bed at the same time every evening, before ten P. M., or even earlier if possible. There is a common belief that every hour before midnight counts as two. Although many persons claim that they only need four or five hours of sleep, research shows that students and adults function much more efficiently after having a full eight hours.

Adequate sleep can reduce stress hormones and depression, two biological markers of cardiovascular disease. Sufficient sleep also helps maintain proper melatonin levels. Melatonin regulates circadian rhythms, the 24-hour fluctuations in body temperature, mood, energy level, hunger and other cyclical biological activities. It is secreted by the pineal gland in response to darkness. Sleep restores the brain, enlivens mental faculties, and sharpens the ability to focus on tasks. REM sleep, the dream state, keeps our mood upbeat, which makes us feel happier.

Eve van Cauter, a sleep specialist at the University of Chicago, demonstrated the deleterious physiological effects of sleep deprivation. After limiting a group of healthy young male subjects to only four hours of sleep for six consecutive nights, their blood insulin levels nearly matched those of diabetics. Their ability to process blood sugar was impaired by 30%, resulting in a huge drop in the insulin response. These findings suggest that chronic short sleepers have a hard time keeping their blood sugar levels stable. This makes them prone to insulin resistance and obesity. They also have elevated levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, which can lead to hypertension and memory impairment. The sleep that helps the body recover from fatigue happens quite soon after falling asleep, so naps of 20-30 minutes can help overcome sleep deprivation.

Skimping on sleep increases the stress hormone, cortisol. The more stress hormones produced, the more the body is in a state of constant vigilance, which leads to higher blood pressure levels. Sleep deprivation also creates havoc with hormones that harm brain cells, increasing growth of fat instead of muscles and accelerating the aging process. Brain levels of cortisol, secreted by the adrenal cortex in response to stress, increase after skimping for just a few nights. Lack of sleep is like living with chronic stress. It can cause depression for those who are genetically predisposed to it, which suppresses the immune system and affects the heart. A study conducted at the Division of Pulmonary Medicine, Department of Medicine, Vancouver General Hospital concluded that short and long self-reported sleep durations are independently associated with a modestly increased risk of coronary events.

So, slow down your activities an hour before bedtime. Get yourself in the mindset to relax, and prepare to let go of daily concerns. Let us examine Transcendental Meditation as a technique to enliven your inner self-corrective mechanisms.

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