When the weather outside is frightful, there’s nothing cozier than a long winter nap. Getting adequate sleep is important for the body to function optimally, but good rest can especially benefit colon health.
A recent study found that adequate sleep duration and waking up easily in the morning can prevent colon cancer compared with deeper sleep and snoring.
Importance of Quality Sleep and Overall Health
When you sleep, your brain and body have time to rest, repair and rejuvenate for the next day. Duration and quality of sleep affect your hormones, metabolism, stress response, immune function and inflammation.
People who don’t get enough sleep show increased risk for heart disease, diabetes and several types of cancer. Good sleep supports a healthy immune system, and poor sleep weakens immunity. A weakened immune system reduces the body’s ability to remove abnormal cells that have the potential to develop into cancer.
Study on Sleep Duration and Ease of Waking
Researchers at The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing, China, analyzed how seven sleeping traits affected colorectal cancer (CRC) risk. These factors included the following:
- Ease of getting up in the morning
- Being a “morning person”
- Sleep duration
- Daytime napping
- Daytime dozing
- Insomnia symptoms
- Snoring
The study used previously collected data on 337,000 patients between the ages of 40 and 69.
Ease of getting up in the morning and sleep duration proved to protect against colon cancer. Snoring, on the other hand, may increase the risk of cancer in the colon and rectum. The research team suggested consistent and healthy sleep patterns could help reduce the risk of colon and rectal disease.
“Future studies should further investigate the causal relationships between sleep traits and CRC across diverse populations and explore potential dose-response relationships,” the authors of the study stated.
Bedtime Habits to Get Better Sleep
Most Americans are not getting enough sleep at night. While adults need seven to eight hours of sleep, children and teens need more rest. Sometimes, thoughtful planning and intentional decision making can improve the quality and quantity of sleep. Creating specific habits can signal to your body that it’s time to rest.
- Turn off overhead lights and turn on lamps to create a darker atmosphere.
- Turn off the television and put away electronics one hour before bed.
- Avoid drinking alcohol or eating large meals before sleeping.
- Know how caffeine affects you and limit caffeinated beverages.
- Designate the last hour of each day as quiet time.
- Take a warm bath or shower before bed.
- Turn down the thermostat to keep your bedroom cooler at night.
- Use light-blocking curtains to make your bedroom dark.
- Read for a few minutes before you turn out the lights.
- As soon as you wake up in the morning, go outside for a few minutes to get natural light. Being outdoors early in the day will help reset your biological clock.
Addressing the Problem of Insomnia
We’ve all experienced a sleepless night now and then, but millions of people suffer from chronic sleep problems. Insomnia is a common sleep disorder in which a person may have “trouble falling asleep, staying asleep or getting good quality sleep.”
Poor sleep is a global problem. Worldwide studies suggest 10 to 30 percent of adults have insomnia, but it may be up to 50 to 60 percent in some populations. Insomnia tends to affect older adults, women and people with physical or mental health problems. Poor sleep can adversely affect work performance and interpersonal relationships and increase the risk for auto accidents.
People who experience chronic insomnia often cannot fix problems by themselves. Often, they need to consult a behavioral sleep specialist and schedule a sleep study.
Sleeping Too Long Could Increase Risk for CRC
Studies show that long sleep could also be detrimental to your colon health. Sleeping more than nine hours per night could increase your risk for colorectal cancer as well as lung cancer.
If you are sleeping nine hours or more at night, talk to your doctor. You may have an underlying condition like sleep apnea that makes you fatigued.
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) can also cause sleep disruptions. People with nighttime GERD often experience sleep fragmentation because multiple incidences of reflux disturb them at night. Although they might not recall being awake during the night, they could experience significant tiredness along with typical GERD symptoms such as a sore throat, persistent cough, hoarseness and frequent throat clearing.
Prioritize Screening for Colon Cancer
Colon cancer is one of the most common cancers, but it is also highly treatable in the initial stages. In fact, colorectal cancer is one of the few cancers that is preventable through screening.
Colorectal cancer screening is unique in that you have choices. You can choose a non-invasive test like stool and blood tests or CT colonography. These tests do not require sedation and they can help detect abnormalities.
Other screenings, flexible sigmoidoscopy and colonoscopy, use a lighted tube to examine the colon lining.
Colonoscopy is the preferred diagnostic screening because it allows your doctor to view the entire colon and remove precancerous growths called polyps. No other screening method can offer cancer detection and prevention. If you get a positive result from any other test, you will need to have a follow-up colonoscopy.
Find a Fellowship-Trained Gastroenterologist
You can rest easier this winter when you schedule a screening for colorectal cancer. If you have never scheduled an appointment for a colonoscopy, we can help. Our GI centers employ fellowship-trained gastroenterologists located across the United States.
The American Cancer Society recommends that all adults at average risk for colon cancer begin screening at age 45, but you may need to get screened earlier if you have certain risk factors:
- Family or personal history of colon cancer or polyps
- Inflammatory bowel disease, including ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease
- Certain genetic syndromes like familial adenomatous polyposis or Lynch syndrome
Finally, if you have digestive symptoms, you should contact your doctor regardless of your age.
Call today to make an appointment. You can discuss your medical history and health conditions as well as problems relating to sleep habits and sleep deprivation. You may find that one appointment can improve your overall quality of life.