How to Optimize Sleep, Be Physically Active & Limit Sitting

How to Optimize Sleep, Be Physically Active & Limit Sitting

Did you know:

• 1 in 3 adults in the U.S. averages less than 7 hours of sleep each night.

• 1 in 2 adults don't engaged in enough aerobic exercise

• 3 in 4 adults don't engage in the recommended amount of strength training

• and the average adult sits 10 hours each day

Did you know:

• sleeping less than 7 hours per night raises risk of premature death by up to 12%

• regular aerobic exercise of moderate intensity, and regular strength training, reduce risk of premature death by up to 73%

• sitting for longer than 8 hours daily increases chance of dying by 40%

• sitting often for longer than 30 minutes at a time, increases risk of death by up to 50%

The Problem with Not Sleeping Enough

Insufficient sleep causes numerous health problems besides shortening your life.  Not getting at least 7 hours of sleep every night increases risk of:

• obesity via changes in leptin and ghrelin that increase appetite, and reduce energy expenditure

• high blood pressure and diabetes due to the chronic stress that results from sleep deprivation and the subsequent fight or fight stress response that increases cortisol levels

• cancer due to chronic inflammation that results in errors in DNA replication repair

• heart attack and stroke resulting from chronic inflammation which causes atherosclerosis

  
  

The Problem with Sitting Too Much

Too much sitting does harm in multiple ways. When we sit, lipoprotein lipase the enzyme on our muscle cell wall becomes less active. Lipoprotein lipase helps control cholesterol levels and when it is not working from too much sitting, cholesterol levels rise and so does risk of heart attack and stroke.  Another enzyme on our muscle cell walls, GLUT, doesn't work as well when we sit too much.  GLUT is responsible for helping to control blood sugar levels. When GLUT is less active as is the case with sitting, blood sugar levels rise and lead to weight gain and higher risk of diabetes. And finally, when we sit too much, our bones become weaker, and we are more likely to experience hip fractures as we age.

Is There a Solution?

Sleeping 7 hours every night sounds like a lot to ask. Americans have gotten less and less sleep over the past century, and the pace of sleep loss has gotten even more drastic with the advent of smart phones. And Americans continue to do more work in the office at a desk, and lead increasingly sedentary lives at home.

Is there a way to get a good night's rest in our hyperconnected, always-on, lives?

Is it possible to sit less in our office based, television centered lives?

The HealthScore Solution

In this course, Dr. Cohen, an NYU School of Medicine trained, UCSF affiliated primary care physician, offers the evidence for sleeping more, exercising more, and sitting less. You'll learn the evidence behind the recommendations. He'll also share with you tips from his own life, and from what has worked with his patients for how to achieve the recommended targets for optimal health.

The most important factors for optimal sleep and physical activity.

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What you will learn

• Learn how to improve your sleep quality
• Learn the importance of sitting less
• Learn the value of aerobic exercise and resistance training

Rating: 0

Level: Beginner Level

Duration: 2 hours

Instructor: Nicholas Cohen, MD