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Simple explanation why you wake up at 3am every night and how to fix it
Do you wake up in the middle of the night and struggle to get back to sleep? It can be hugely frustrating and the frustration it makes you feel only makes it harder to nod off again, thinking about how tired youll be in the morning.
It might be more common than you think. Sleep issues abound. Insomnia disorder is often triggered by stressful life events, and Western democracy in the 21st century is definitely a stressful life event. Election anxiety, performance pressure, and phone addiction all take their toll. Heres a perspective on having difficulty sleeping that you might not have come across before, from the so-called Father of Biohacking.
Why people wake up in the middle of the night, according to a biohacker
Dave Asprey is an entrepreneur and author who advocates a low-carbohydrate, high-fat diet he calls the Bulletproof diet. He recently appeared on The James Altucher Show, a podcast hosted by& James Altucher& to talk about sleep, among other things.
Most people who wake up between 3 am and 5 am and cant get back to sleep, he says, thats a crash in your blood sugar.
What happens, according to Dave, is this. Your blood sugar drops to 70; your body says, Oh I needed some glucose to power my brain to do its cleaning process at night. Im out of glucose. Heres an answer, how about cortisol and adrenaline? Because those release sugar real quickly. The problem is, cortisol and adrenaline wake you up.
Your brain gets what it needs, but your body doesnt get the sleep it requires to fix itself and feel rejuvenated in the morning. You lie there, awake, possibly feeling hungry, and almost certainly feeling frustrated about not being able to get back to sleep. That frustration further inhibits your ability to get back to sleep, and the vicious cycle does its thing.
Daves suggestion? Have a small snack before bed, either raw honey, collagen, or MCT oil, or just mix all three together.
If that sounds less than appetizing, we get you.
Who is Dave Asprey?
Born in 1973, Dave Asprey started in IT. He taught web engineering at UCSC Silicon Valley Extension and was an early adopter of e-commerce.
In 2013, he founded Bulletproof 360 Inc, followed swiftly by Bulletproof Nutrition Inc. The Bulletproof diet started with a coffee recipe consisting of coffee, butter, and an MCT oil more on MCT oils below.
In a nutshell, the Bulletproof diet he developed and promotes is low-carbohydrate, high-fat, and moderate in protein. It includes grass-fed beef and butter and excludes soy, wheat, canned vegetables, and microwaved foods.
It has its critics. Vox called it everything wrong with eating in America, while the Telegraph has described it as simplistic, invalid, and unscientific.
And what are collagen and MCT oil?
The MCT oil Dave Asprey suggests you have as a snack before going to bed is a supplement made from a type of fat called medium-chain triglycerides. Its usually a derivative of coconut oil or palm kernel oil. Studies into MCT oil consumption are sparse and, according to WebMD, mostly inconclusive.
Meanwhile, collagen is simply a type of protein. Your skin contains collagen, as do your ligaments. But you can also take collagen as a supplement, for example as a powder you put in your morning smoothie. The idea is that it supports skin, joint, and hair health, according to Healthline.
If a late-night snack of oil and collagen powder doesnt get your tummy rumbling, go for the raw honey. If that sounds too sweet for a before-bed bite, have (a small amount of) real food instead. Or…
- HOW ABOUT THIS? 3-minute drink will help you doze off right away
