According to Dr. Carrie Angus, writing online for The Yoga Site, about a third of all adults have trouble sleeping through the night. Whether your insomnia is related to stress, too much stimulating activities or foods, or tampering with your...
About 20 percent of the American population has a sleep disorder, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Many people take melatonin to help with insomnia, or the continuous problem of sleeplessness, but evidence for...
Your natural sleep-wake cycle is affected by a number of factors. Certain issues, such as age and exposure to light, influence melatonin, a hormone produced by your body that acts as a signal for the sleep-wake cycle. If you have difficulty...
Caffeine cessation can be difficult because it leads to withdrawal symptoms. Caffeine works on the central nervous system. It has the ability to interfere with brain waves and natural cycles in the body. Some of the symptoms are the exact opposite...
The pineal gland in the brain releases melatonin into the bloodstream, regulating many body functions including the sleep-wake cycle. Many people take additional dietary supplements of melatonin to help with sleep related issues, such as jet lag...
Melatonin is a hormone secreted by the pineal gland in your brain that controls your circadian rhythm, or sleep-wake cycle. When light decreases in the evening, you produce more melatonin, causing you to feel sleepy. After you sleep, and it...
Secreted by the pineal gland in the brain, melatonin helps maintain the body's circadian rhythm, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. The body's circadian rhythm acts as an internal 24-hour body clock, as it plays a critical...
Essential for life, cortisol exerts a wide range of effects that effects a number of the body's organ systems. The steroid hormone, produced in the adrenal cortex, helps you deal with stressful situations, plays a part in the breakdown of stored...
A patient with bipolar disorder suffers from mood shifts between mania and depression. If the patient has bipolar disorder I, she has more manic episodes than depressive episodes, with symptoms such as an elevated mood, reckless behavior and...
According to the National Sleep Foundation, experts estimate that the average adult requires seven to nine hours of sleep per night. During this time, the body replenishes or restores the energy expended throughout the day. Difficulty falling...
B12 is an essential vitamin that fuels the brain and many other body functions. Vitamin B12 deficiency can lead to problems sleeping, so make sure you get enough of this nutrient by eating a diet that includes animal products. You can also find...
Melatonin is a natural hormone produced in the human brain. Its role in health relates to the sleep-wake cycle and the regulation of many bodily functions. Many people take melatonin supplements to assist with insomnia and other sleep disorders....
Estrogen, a steroid hormone, is the primary female sex hormone. Estrogen levels are highest in women of reproductive age and tend to decline following menopause. Melatonin is a hormone produced by the pineal gland in the brain and is involved in...
Exercising early in the morning provides numerous benefits, both for your health and schedule. An early morning workout gets your exercise out of the way and can help regulate your sleep/wake cycle. Morning exercise helps your brain focus and...
Hormones are chemical messengers produced by endocrine glands, affecting many aspects of the human body's function. On a small scale, hormones help deal with everyday stress, body temperature and the natural sleep and wake cycle. Over time,...
Sleeping patterns in babies are quite different from those in infants, toddlers and older children. Newborn babies sleep about 16 to 17 hours a day in brief stints of one to two hours, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics, or AAP. Your...
Effexor, clinically known as venlafaxine, is a medication prescribed for the treatment of depression and anxiety. It was first approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1993 and has been extensively studied in clinical trials and post...
When it comes to getting a good night's sleep, vitamin supplements can be a wolf in sheep's clothing. Multivitamins and other supplements can actually lead to increased problems sleeping. If you have persistent problems with getting enough sleep,...
The eye is a sense organ that reacts to light and processes the emitted or reflected light from the objects around us. That allows us to see the shapes, colors, depth and dimensions of these objects. The eyes are connected with the brain, which...
Alzheimer's disease is a degenerative brain condition that generally affects people as they age. One symptom of cognitive decline is worsening sleep problems, as the sleep/wake cycle becomes confused and erratic. Natural sleep remedies may assist...
You rely on melatonin to know when it is time to go to sleep. However, some children experience difficulty going to sleep due to sleep-related medical conditions. When this occurs, melatonin may be recommended. Understanding the proper dosages and...
If you have trouble sleeping or feel depressed, it's possible that you're not eating enough foods containing tryptophan. Tryptophan is an important precursor to the mood-regulating and sleep-promoting neurotransmitter serotonin. Serotonin is also...
Puffy eyes, also known as bags under your eyes, can be caused by aging, which leads to a weakening of the muscles surrounding the area. Additionally, the Mayo Clinic explains that puffy eyes can be caused by inadequate amounts of sleep, allergies...
Melatonin supplements are a synthetic version of the naturally occurring hormone melatonin, which helps regulate your body's sleep-wake cycle. Taking appropriate doses of melatonin may help alleviate issues associated with sleeping problems, such...
Melatonin is a hormone secreted at night by the pineal gland. It regulates the sleep-wake cycle, but it also exists, though in smaller quantity, in the gastrointestinal tract as well as in bone marrow cells. Melatonin is primarily known as a...
Many, but not all, Alzheimer's patients experience behavioral and psychiatric symptoms. Some 5.3 million Americans suffer from the degenerative brain disorder, according to data on the Alzheimer's Association website in 2010. Personality changes...
Post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is a form of anxiety disorder triggered by experiencing or witnessing a traumatic event. According to MayoClinic.com, symptoms characteristic of PTSD involve memory disturbance, increased arousal or anxiety...
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter associated with many physiological functions in the central nervous system. It is synthesized from l–tryptophan, an essential amino acid found in many protein foods. Deficient levels of serotonin in the brain...
Caffeine, found in beverages like coffee, tea and soft drinks, is the world's most used mood-altering substance, according to Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. The mood-enhancing effect of caffeine is the mechanism behind the dependency that,...
A coma is a state of prolonged unconsciousness. Brain functions are at their lowest level of alertness. A comatose patient cannot be awakened, fails to respond normally to pain or light, does not have sleep-wake cycles, and does not take voluntary...
