Longevity News Blog

Hi Friend,Sleep is the most common thing I get asked about.People want good sleep and try to get good sleep, but are frustrated by the difficulty. Sleep is the most powerful drug available – for performance, mental health, and well-being. After years of experiencing the same challenges, I figured out how to reliably get high-quality rest. I achieved the best sleep score in the world. Eight months of perfect sleep. Here is how you do it. 1. Build your life around sleep.Right now, sleep is an afterthought in culture. When you're done watching your movie. When you're finished with work. When you feel like it. You need to treat sleep with the same level of seriousness and devotion as you do your work. It demands your best performance. 2. Consume your final meal at least two hours before bed.If your bedtime is 10 PM, finish eating by 8 PM. Then day by day, move it back by 30 minutes. By the end of the first week, you're having your final meal of the day at around 5 PM. Do this to lower your resting heart rate. You're giving your body time to digest food and prepare for sleep. The lower your resting heart rate, the better your sleep. 3. Avoid blue light before bed.An hour or two before bed, try to avoid blue light. That means turn off screens, or eliminate blue light from your screens (there are apps and settings to do this on computers and mobile devices).Instead, turn on red and amber lights. Light can significantly affect your readiness to fall asleep. 4. Create a wind-down routine.You can't just finish work and put your head on the pillow and expect great sleep. You need to calm your body and mind down. You need separation from work. Read a book, go for a walk, do a breathing exercise, take a bath, meditate, or journal. 5. Consistency.The body loves routine and will reward you with powerful sleep performance. Go to bed within +/- 30 minutes of your chosen bedtime every single day. Create the habit and stay with the habit. I have a routine where I maintain an internal dialogue, breaking myself into various characters: "Ambitious Bryan," "Anxious Bryan," etc., and I allow them to tell me about all the pressing things on their minds. I write them down and tell them that I hear them and will address them tomorrow after we get a great night's sleep. It's helpful for me to separate myself into different parts and empathize with their concerns and objectives. 6. Be mindful of stimulants.Caffeine has a six-hour half-life, so if you consume coffee at 4 PM, you have half a coffee in your system when you go to bed at 10 PM. People metabolize caffeine differently, so what's right for you will be unique. Err on the side of caution. Consume stimulants earlier in the day to avoid sleep disruption. Closing thoughts:Sleep is hard work.Success will take time, as with all things.Invest in the habits, and your body will perform. Be well,Bryan  

Hi Friend,Deep sleep is one of the most powerful things you can do for health and wellness. Missing it is very bad. Most deep sleep happens early in your sleep cycle.If you miss your deep sleep window, it's gone (mostly). See in my data that all of my deep sleep happened in the first 3rd of the night. Sometimes I'll get a bit more deep sleep in the early parts of the morning too but it's always heavily weighted towards the beginning of the night.Deep sleep is a super power. It is essential for physical restoration, muscle repair, immune function, and detoxifying the brain. It improves memory, supports learning, regulates hormones, and promotes emotional resilience.Here's how you can get Deep Sleep.How to get deep sleep: 1. Consume your final meal of the day at least 2 hours before bed. Work your way back to 8 hours before bed, even if for experimentation purposes only. Test out different eating windows and find the optimal time for you.2. Have a 30-60 minute wind down routine before bed. Go for a walk, read a book, meditate or do breath work. Calm yourself from the day's activities. Turn off screens. Prepare your body and mind for sleep. It's worth it. I promise.3. Decide on your bedtime and then be in bed +/- 30 minutes every day. Your bedtime is your most important appointment of the day. Respect yourself and be on time.4. Turn off screens. Lower house lights. Avoid blues. use amber and red light.5. Try to avoid caffeine and other stimulants at least 12 hours before bed. Experiment with not consuming caffeine to evaluate if caffeine is negatively affecting your sleep. Avoid alcohol all together.6. Aim to get 1-2 hours of deep sleep every night. It will change your life and make everything better.Be well,Bryan

Hi Friend,Sleep deprivation is brain damage.Young healthy participants showed a 20% increase in S-100B levels following a single night of sleep deprivation, the same following brain traumatic injury.My S-100B levels are top 1% optimal, reflecting my devotion to ideal sleep.What is S-100B?S-100B is a calcium-binding protein that plays a crucial role in various cellular processes, including cell growth. Elevated levels of S-100B are associated with numerous pathological conditions, including:❌ Brain trauma❌ Neurodegenerative disorders❌ Cancer❌ Depression and anxietyHow does sleep affect S-100B?The damage happens by disrupting the blood-brain barrier, allowing the protein S-100B to leak into the bloodstream, which at high levels, triggers inflammation and becomes toxic to brain cells, potentially leading to neuronal death.What is an ideal S-100B level?My S-100B is perfect, be sure yours is too.  My recent result is 63.1 ng/L with a range of 20.6 - 103.7 which is 99th percentile optimal.The goal for S-100B is midrange. Elevated levels signal your brain is under stress. Low levels could mean the brain isn’t properly repairing itself. Middle range allows brain recovery and resilience. 3 Tips to Keep Your S-100B in Check Elevated serum S-100B levels are common markers of brain inflammation due to injury, poor sleep or bad diet Prioritizing quality sleep is one of the best ways to reduce S-100B and protect your brain Focus on deep sleep as this is when the brain goes through its most reparative processes Follow my sleep routine and become a professional sleeper Be well,BryanSources:https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24470708/https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-020-75618-0https://www.spandidos-publications.com/10.3892/or.2017.5922https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6405260/

High-quality sleep changed my life. It took me years to build the habits and systems that led to eight months of 100% perfect sleep. As far as I know, this is the best in the world. I’m going to teach you the habits for excellent sleep. We all know the energizing feeling of a great night’s sleep. It rejuvenates the body, boosts brain function, powers the immune system immunity, and regulates hormones. It’s the foundation for well-being and longevity. On the other hand, sleep deprivation impairs. Being constantly awake for 18 or 24 hours is equivalent to having a blood alcohol content of 0.05% or 0.1%, respectively. In the U.S. 0.08% is considered legally intoxicated. Also, get six hours or sleep or less on average and you’re 4.2x times more likely to develop the common cold.  And if you need any more motivation, one night with 4 hours of sleep showed a 70% reduction in the activity of natural killer cells in 18 out of 23 participants. One night of subsequent normal sleep was enough to restore NK activity to its baseline. Natural killer cells are what’s killing cancer cells among other functions. Preclinical studies have established a causal link between the lack of sleep inhibition of immune surveillance and increased tumor growth in animal models. Sleep deprivation diminishes cognitive functions, slows reflexes, and gives rise to poor decision-making. It’s linked to heart disease, diabetes, obesity, anxiety, depression and weakened immunity.  If you only do one thing for your health: sleep.  Learn 10 habits.     Reframe Your Identity: You are a professional sleeper Make sleep your #1 priority. Nothing influences your conscious existence more. Plan your day around sleep. It’s the most important appointment in your calendar.  Get buy-in and support from others by explaining your priorities. Ignore those who say sleep is for the weak. They’re drunk from sleep deprivation.  Sleep will make you a top performer. Create a 30-60 minute Wind-Down Routine: Set a specific time each evening to start wind down, for example: Engage in relaxing activities like reading or taking a warm bath. An online randomized clinical trial on 991 subjects concluded that reading a book in bed improved sleep quality in a majority of participants, as self-reported by the participants using SQS scoring. Practice mindfulness or deep breathing exercises. In a wide meta analysis, mindfulness meditation outperformed controls and proved equivalent to medications in treating sleep disturbances. Listen to soothing music: Soft, calming music can help signal that it's time to sleep. In a study on 94 students, soothing classical music outperformed a negative control and an audiobook at improving sleep quality and reducing depression. In older adults too, a meta analysis of 9 studies with 489 participants showed significant improvements with sleep latency, duration, and efficiency with various music interventions in multiple settings and countries. Get Morning Light:  Get outside within the first 15-30 minutes of waking to set your circadian rhythm and boost mood. Use a light therapy device if natural sunlight isn’t available. Regulate Evening Light:  Dim the lights one to two hours before bedtime to create a relaxed atmosphere. Use warm lighting in the evening. Even better, use a red light. Plus it’s a cool vibe. Install blue light filters on your devices (i.e. f.lux) and consider blue light-blocking glasses. Limit screen time at least an hour before bed and blackout your bedroom. Regulate Your Bedroom Temperature:  Keep your bedroom temperature between 60-67°F (15-19°C). Choose breathable bedding and light sleepwear. Use fans or cooling devices and consider taking a warm bath before bed.  Ventilate your room and or use a temperature-controlled mattress if possible. Track your sleep patterns with a journal or sleep tracker. Keep a Consistent Bedtime:  Choose a bedtime that allows for 7-9 hours in bed each night. Avoid scheduling late nights and be consistent even on weekends. Set an alarm for winding down. Track your sleep patterns with a journal or sleep tracker. Curate Your Sleep Environment: Ensure your bedroom is quiet, dark, and cool. Invest in a comfortable mattress and pillows. Remove distractions and keep your bedroom clean and clutter-free. Consider using a noise machine to offset environmental sounds or earplugs if necessary. Eat your Final Meal of the Day Hours Before Bed:  For years I tested my eating times on sleep quality and landed at 11 am being the best for high quality sleep. By the time I go to bed at 8:30 pm, primary digestion is done and my resting heart rate is around 47-49 bpm. If I eat later in the day, my resting heart rate will be between 55-58 bpm because my body is still digesting food and it will lessen my sleep quality by ~30%. But you don’t need to do what I do. Try to have your last meal of the day at least two hours before bed and avoid large meals close to bedtime. You can experiment extending to eating your final meal of the day 4 and 6 hours before bed and assess whether it improves your sleep quality. Eating close to bed creates large metabolic demands on your body, causes blood glucose fluctuations, reduces melatonin production, and disrupts your body’s natural process of lowering core body temperature. Like me, you may find that certain foods such as pasta and breads reduce the quality of sleep.  I was very surprised to see how much food positively and negatively affected my sleep.  Avoid Stimulants Before Bed:  Try to avoid caffeine, alcohol, and other stimulants at least 10 hours before sleep. I don’t consume caffeine or alcohol. They each disrupt my mood and negatively affect my sleep. But that’s me. You can find what’s right for you. Caffeine has a half life of 6 hours in the blood. That means that consuming a cup of coffee 6 hours before bedtime is equivalent to drinking half a cup immediately before going to bed! Caffeine manipulates brain cells by blocking their sensing of declining energy levels (blocking adenosine receptors). And this sense of declining energy levels is essential for your brain to switch to sleep mode. Caffeine in your system close to bedtime can also interfere with your sleep phases and quality later in the night. You might think that alcohol, as a depressant, helps you sleep faster. That may be true, but alcohol also has a negative effect on your sleep quality. Alcohol reduces REM sleep, increases sleep fragmentation (frequent awakenings), and can exacerbate existing medical conditions Opt for herbal teas or other relaxing drinks in the evening. Gather Data:  Track your sleep habits and patterns with a journal or sleep tracker. Use the data to make informed decisions and adjustments to your routine. Continuously monitor and tweak your habits to optimize your sleep quality.   Print out the attached checklist to track your progress or download here.   Improving sleep is a journey. Take it one step at a time and start by focusing on reshaping your relationship with sleep.  You've got this.  Sleep well, Bryan Disclaimer: this blog is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. The information provided should not be used for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, and those seeking personal medical advice should consult with a licensed physician.