Science-Based Biohacks For Optimizing Your Sleep, Part 3

Welcome to part 3 of our Science-Based Biohacks For Optimizing Your Sleep Blog!

Today, we will cover tips 8-11. Check out our previous posts (links at the end of the post) if you haven't seen them already!

Sleep Biohack 8: The Best Supplements For Sleep

Based on our evaluation, these are the four best supplements you can take for your sleep. In combination with all the other tips in this blog series, these supplements can be very powerful in helping you get deep, rejuvenating and healing sleep. 

1. Glycine: an amino acid that has been shown to improve sleep quality by lowering core body temperature. Research has also shown it to decrease how long it takes to fall asleep and reduce daytime sleepiness and fatigue the day after at doses of 3 grams. Plus it has a nice sweet taste! 
2. Melatonin: as discussed in our previous post, melatonin signals to your brain that it is nighttime and helps you fall asleep. Take physiological doses of 0.3-0.5 mg which works better than higher doses. Remember, more is not always better. 
3. Magnesium: Helps soothe the nerves and calm the muscles allowing for deeper relaxing sleep. The most effective form for sleep is magnesium glycinate, which is magnesium bound to glycine (as we mentioned earlier), for a two in one effect! 
4. Probiotics: Your gut plays a major role in regulating your brain through the gut-brain axis. A potent gut health blend such as one that includes probiotics, prebiotics, and polyphenols like quercetin can help you get deep and relaxing sleep while also rejuvenating your gut for the next day while you sleep. myPEAK PeakBiotic contains all of these components, and was specifically designed by physicians to promote optimal gut health and to promote deep an rejuvenating sleep when taken before bed. (https://www.mypeaksupplements.com/products/mypeak-peakbiotic-total-vegan-probiotic-gut-health-blend-50-billion-cfu-14-vegan-strains-2-month-supply-for-digestion)

Sleep Biohack 9: The Best Teas For Sleep

Teas are medicinal herbs that have been used throughout history for countless purposes. In ayurveda, the most ancient medicinal system in the world, it is believed that every plant on earth contains some medicinal benefits when properly prepared. Many modern allopathic medicines are also derived from plants. Therefore, using these plants can help provide the calming elixir you need to help support your thriving sleep. We picked our 4 favorites. Try them in combination blend or alone and see the benefits yourself!

1. Chamomile: The most popular tea for sleep, chamomile is known for its calming and soothing effects on your mind. This is done through an antioxidant known as apignenin which helps reduce anxiety and promote sleep. 
2. Valerian root: A root that has been used in both pill and tea form for centuries, valerian helps decrease the time it takes to fall asleep potentially through a calming neurotransmitter called GABA.
3. Lemon Balm: A perennial herb that belongs to the mint family, lemon balm, is soothing to your mind by reducing stress and thus promoting sleep also through a GABA mediated mechanism.
4. Passionflower: A flower from the Passiflora plant, passionflower is a relaxing elixir that has been studied for its ability to promote sleep. Combined with Valerian root, it has been shown to be even more effective, in some cases as well as prescription sleep aids.

Sleep Biohack 10: Understand the Effects of Caffeine on Sleep

In our earlier post, we learned about adenosine and how it helps regulate how well you sleep at night and sleep pressure. In brief review, adenosine builds up throughout the day in the brain and increases the feeling of sleepiness or fatigue. When you sleep, you remove the adenosine and start fresh and energized. The way caffeine works is by being an adenosine antagonist, meaning it prevents adenosine from binding to receptors in the brain giving you the illusion that you are no longer tired or sleepy. While this can be useful from time to time, daily use of caffeine can have a host of negative consequences. To use caffeine in a healthy way, avoid it at least 10 hours before you sleep, because with a 5 hour half life, 25% of caffeine still remains in your system 10 hours later. This disrupts sleepiness and sleep quality leading to a self perpetuating cycle in which you become dependent on caffeine to function since you are not getting fully rejuvenating sleep at night. In our next biohack, we will cover in depth the ideal ways to use caffeine for peak performance without the negative side effects. 

Caffeine is a powerful brain and energy booster when used correctly, but also can be very detrimental chronically if misused. It can create chronic cycles of adrenal fatigue and long term exhaustion because it covers up the fact that your tank is running on empty. Therefore, using caffeine correctly is important. Here are some key tips to keep in mind:

1. The best time to have caffeine is first thing in the morning! This allows it to fully leave your system before you attempt to sleep at night as even small amounts in the blood can disturb sleep.
2. Never have caffeine in the last 10 hours before sleep!
3. Be mindful of how much caffeine you are using
4. You should never need caffeine to function, if you do, it is a sign that you need to make some changes whether it is getting more sleep or eating healthier or reducing stress

Ideally, replace caffeine with more potent and less habit building alternative like the amazing compound Theacrine (TeaCrine®) which we will discuss in our next biohack.

Biohack 11: Replace Caffeine with Better Alternatives Like Theacrine/TeaCrine® 

Theacrine has arrived! While not as many people have heard of theacrine, this compound blows caffeine out of the water. Theacrine is extracted from the Chinese Kucha Leaf Tea and has a similar mechanism of action to caffeine, but is vastly superior. Theacrine has a significantly longer half life meaning no crash and a longer sustained focus (up to 8 hours vs 1-2 for caffeine). And unlike caffeine, theacrine is NOT a stimulant. So no increases in heart rate, blood pressure or anxiety!!

To summarize, Theacrine:

1. Provides up to 8 hours of sustained energy and focus
2. Decreases anxiety unlike caffeine which increases it
3. Is not a stimulant (no increases in heart rate or blood pressure)
4. NO crash, NO tolerance, NO jitters
5. Has been clinically studied and proven in multiple human studies
6. Can actually be combined with caffeine for a synergistic effect

Look for supplements with 200 mg of theacrine (the proven dose) and ideally as TeaCrine® the trademarked ingredient that has been clinically studied and has proven potency and purity. 

myPEAK Brilliance contains the clinically proven dose of theacrine, in the patented and clinically studied TeaCrine®  form, extracted from the Chinese Kucha Leaf. Combined with brain nourishing ingredients Cognizin®  Citicoline, Gingko Biloba, Active B-complex vitamins, Rhodiola Rosea, and Huperzine A, Brilliance is the ultimate brain health blend addressing your brain from every angle, both short term and long term. Furtermore, the bioavilability of all these ingredients is enhanced with patented black pepper fruit extract, BioPerine®, proven to increase the absorption of many vitamins, herbs, supplements, and minerals, some up to 2000%, so you get maximum benefit. And unlike caffeine, Brilliance will reduce anxiety while improving focus, cognition, motivation, and fitness without the crash of caffeine or any sleep disturbance! 

The following chart compares caffeine vs TeaCrine®.

Give these tips a try and see what a significant change it makes in your sleep! Doing one is powerful, but combining them will provide a multiplying and synergistic effect. As always, please reach out to us if you have any questions!

Learn more at: https://www.mypeaksupplements.com/products/mypeak-brilliance-elite-nootropic-caffeine-alternative-8-hour-energy-brain-booster-pre-workout-with-teacrine%C2%AE-and-cognizin%C2%AE

Links for Prior Blog Posts

Part 1: https://www.mypeaksupplements.com/blogs/the-mypeak-blog/science-based-biohacks-for-optimizing-your-sleep-part-1

Part 2: https://www.mypeaksupplements.com/blogs/the-mypeak-blog/science-based-biohacks-for-optimizing-your-sleep-part-2

If you want to watch the YouTube video version of this blog: https://youtu.be/Soo2UNvXA8w