Sleep for Better bones

​Sleep sleep sleep!! I know many of my clients and I have a hard sleeping sometimes, for some it is most nights. It sucks, especially when you are hitting that stage where  your hormones are changing. Now here is what I really want to talk about. Did you know that your sleep could also affect your bone health? 

We know that the lack of sleep can affect our weight, balance, mood, and etc, which can lead to injuries like bone fractures or falls. According to one study that I came across bone formation peaks overnight which really isn’t all that shocking when you think about everything else that our body does when it is at rest, like muscle repair. But to be honest, I never really thought about the fact that sleep can help with bone formation.

Due to age and our hormones changing the amount of sleep we are getting has gone down and many have started turning towards some type of sleep aid to help with the issue. What if I told you that the use of some of these aids can alter your bone metabolism? There are studies that have shown an increased risk of fractures and falls when using medication that uses hypnotics or z-drugs and that caffeine can also have a negative effect by altering calcium absorption and homeostasis which our bones need. Melatonin is a popular one and as of right now is thought it helps by decreasing bone resorption and promoting bone formation. Improvement was found in the neck and lumbar spine, but other areas have not seen significant changes.  I have included the link to the study below, it is long but worth the read.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0026049517303372
My takeaway:

Sleep is vital for us to function properly and yes some do have a hard time sleeping, but be cautious of the sleep aids you may be taking to help you sleep or those that you may be using to stay awake. Your bones are what holds your body up!

This is what can help! Implement a healthy diet, perform exercises that help with bone growth, and do your research when it comes to improving sleep. Go as natural as you can.

Train hard, stay strong, 
Deanna