Factors Affecting Sleep Flashcards
How can use of drugs like coffee impact on sleep?
Stimulant drugs have the effect of making people more alert or keeping them awake and can reduce the quality of sleep. Stimulants are substances effect the central nervous system and body which leads to increased awareness and trouble sleeping. Stimulants are commonly used throughout the day to improve mood and stress such as drinking coffee in the morning to set yourself up for the day. Caffeine is the world’s most popular psychoactive drug and is present in the likes of coffee, tea, chocolate, headache tablets and energy drinks. Caffeine can be taken in tablets and many people consume it to stay alert but taking it in the evenings can lead to trouble sleeping as caffeine increases adrenaline production. It can take over 5 hours for the level of caffeine in the blood to drop to half the level it was after consuming it. Caffeine blocks adenosine receptors in the brain which reduces the impact of fatigue.
What other drugs can impact on sleep?
‘Speed’ is another stimulant which can disrupt sleep. Although it is a Class B illegal drug, it is still commonly used for socialising and for workers on the night shift. Speed is a powerful stimulant to the nervous system and is highly addictive as well. Taking it can increase alertness, lead to insomnia, promote wakefulness and cause delusions.
Prescription drugs can also impact on sleep as an undesired side effect either by making it harder to sleep or causing drowsiness. Changing the dosage of prescription medication can lead to better sleep as many side effects can change our sleep patterns. Asthma and blood pressure medication can lead to insomnia while antihistamines can cause drowsiness. Antidepressants which are used to treat depression have been shown to increase the time taken to enter REM sleep.
How can light affect sleep?
Researchers have shown that artificial light can disturb our circadian rhythms (24 hour sleep wake schedule) and has been shown to affect things like brain wave patterns, hormone production and cell regulation. Artificial light and screens can also affect the release of melatonin. If our brain can’t track the time of day or night due to artificial light then it can release melatonin at the wrong time or fail to release it when we want to sleep. Light from some low energy light bulbs and screens can affect sleep as these contain a large proportion of blue wavelengths that can have a strong effect in suppressing sleep. Sleep hormones such as melatonin can also be delayed. Chang et al (2015) found that the use of eReaders and tablets led to lower releases of melatonin and participants took longer to get to sleep, had less REM sleep during the night and were less alert in the mornings. This research shows it can be highly problematic for our sleep to look at screens in the hour or so before bed. This can lead to poorer sleep quality amongst non-insomnia sufferers.
