Okay… sitting here, staring at the blank page, wondering what I should write about today. Feeling tired, a tad resentful and kind of BLAH after more than the occasional night of interrupted sleep. Waking up usually between 2:30 - 3:30 am to use the bathroom, and for the last week or so, suffering from cramps. Ugh.
So master procrastinator that I am, I turn to the internet, and yes I confess, Facebook, to find this in the top of my news feed:
Is your depleted liver keeping you from sleeping through the night? Could a teaspoon of honey before retiring help?
Do you experience any of these during the night?
wake regularly
have night sweats
night cramps
acid reflux
need to go to the bathroom
Do you experience these in the early morning?
feel nauseous
weak
wake up exhausted
have a dry throat
Voila! It's called the "Honey Diet for Hibernation." Apparently, any one of these signs tells you that as you sleep, your body is producing a stream of stress hormones instead of burning fat and repairing muscles. We burn an incredible 70% fat while we rest, 35% during low level exercise, 20% during moderate exercise and a mere 10% during intense exercise. I am delighted by this news.
It seems that if your liver is not fueled before going to bed, your adrenal glands go into action, releasing stress hormones which raise your heart rate and blood pressure. A teaspoon of natural honey (raw is best and if you can get it locally, even better) taken fifteen minutes before retiring replenishes the liver, speeding up your metabolism, burning fat and soothing the adrenals thereby helping you get a good nights sleep.
While I can't vouch for it, my interest is definitely piqued. I am a honey lover from way back, and once in awhile use the miraculous Manuka Honey, a floral honey from the nectar of Manuka tree, a type of tea tree native to Australia and New Zealand where it is produced. But Manuka is an acquired taste and expensive, so go for best natural, raw honey you can find or afford. At the time of writing this I was living in Los Angeles and getting my honey from Bill's Bees:
http://www.billsbees.com/home
The Magic of Bees...
Pots of honey, thousands of years old were found in ancient Egyptian tombs still perfectly preserved. The ancient Egyptians used medicinal honey and the earliest recorded use comes from Sumerian clay tablets stating that honey was used in 30% of prescriptions and in 2007 received approval from the US Food & Drug Administration for wound management.
Honey restocks the liver selectively without causing any digestive burden and forms a stable supply of liver glycogen which our brain needs for the 6 - 8 hours of fasting a we are sleeping.
By fueling the liver at night, honey keeps blood sugar levels balanced, allowing your recovery hormones to do their work (Journal of Medicinal Foods, April 2004)
Some Reported Benefits of "Honey and Sleep"
People who have tried it swear by its efficacy reporting that it has helped in these ways:
better sleep
more strength
enhances concentration and motivation
weight loss
Update
It's been a few days since I first come upon this great news and I tried a teaspoon of honey as suggested... and it WORKED! The one night I missed I really felt a difference. Just saying... but give it a try. It can't hurt.
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