🎧 New podcast episode 16 Dr. Meeta Singh

Dr. Singh is the Medical Director for the Sleep Disorders Center at Henry Ford Medical Center – Columbus in Novi and Henry Ford Medical Center – New Center One in Detroit. She is also part of Henry Ford’s Sports Medicine team and advises teams in the four professional sports leagues: Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League and National Hockey League. She led a study titled “Urgent Wake Up Call for the NBA” published this month in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine that focuses on sleep-related issues and the detrimental effects on athletic performance and health of players, coaches and management caused by the NBA season travel.

Research also shows that 65% of student athletes who get less than 8 hours of sleep suffered sports-related injuries, a rate that this is more than 50% higher than for those teen athletes getting more than 8 hours of sleep.

These helpful tips from Dr. Singh can guide student athletes toward building healthier sleep habits and getting the right amount of sleep:

1. Limit caffeine. Caffeine is a popular ingredient in many pre-workout drinks, and many athletes choose to use it for an energy boost. However, having caffeine late in the day may make falling asleep and staying asleep difficult. Athletes should try logging their intake to determine what time to stop consuming and how much is okay to consume.
2. Maintain a regular sleep schedule.The body has an internal clock that’s largely affected by environment. Going to bed and waking up at approximately the same time each day can add a natural rhythm to the body’s internal clock, which can cause people to feel more awake during the day and fall asleep easily at night.
3. Workout early.Often, working out later in the day gives people a burst of energy that can keep them up late into the night. For example, exercising after 9 p.m. can boost body temperature, making sleep difficult. However, research shows morning workouts can help achieve deeper sleep, and working out in the afternoon can help reduce insomnia.
4. Nothing can keep one up at night like a buzzing smartphone. Additionally, the blue light a phone emits may slow the production of melatonin, making sleep difficult. Advise your child to leave electronics out of reach while they’re sleeping. And as an added bonus, if their phone is their alarm, it will force them out of bed in the mornings.
5. Focus on breathing.Focusing on breath can help steady heart rate and relax the body. A popular breathing technique is the 4-7-8 exercise, in which one inhales through the nose for four seconds, holds their breath for seven, and exhales for eight.
6. Keep it dark, cool and quiet.Having the right environment is an important part of falling asleep… and staying asleep.

Also big thanks to https://blog.feedspot.com/sports_and_athletic_performance_podcasts/  for naming the podcast one of the Top 40 podcasts in our Genre!

Dr. Meeta Singh
Instagram  @athletesleepmd
Twitter @athletesleepmd1
Website https: https://meetasinghmd.com/




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