Sleep is good for pretty much every aspect of a person’s health. It’s refreshing, rejuvenating, and restorative. And, unlike most other aspects of one’s wellness routine, sleep isn’t optional — it’s mandatory. Skimping on your sleep will catch up with you eventually, whether you realize it or not!
For something as important as it is, sleep often gets overlooked in favor of flashier products and practices. This article is designed to change that. In it we’ll be looking at five of the top ways you can fall asleep (and stay asleep) naturally.
- Sleep: the most underrated thing for health and wellness?
- Do cannabinoids affect sleep cycles?
- 5 of the best pro-sleep substances
- CBD
- GABA
- Melatonin
- Chamomile
- Passionflower
Sleep: the most underrated thing for health and wellness?
If you think about it, just going through life is a high-maintenance activity. And guess what? Sleep is the very best way to keep your own body maintained. During sleep your body produces many of the vital hormones it needs to get through the next day.
Sleep helps your brain stay flexible, too; when you go to sleep at night, you’re giving your brain a window of time within which to refine and reorganize itself. New research shows that sleep also gives the brain time to ‘detox’ itself from daily stress. [1]
Just as important as how you sleep is when you sleep. A growing number of sleep experts feel it’s best to sleep throughout the nighttime hours, then rise with the sun and get active during daytime hours. Synchronizing your sleep with the sun can go a long way towards optimizing your brain’s internal clock — a nifty little structure called the suprachiasmatic nucleus. [2]
Good sleep = regeneration = good health. Poor sleep = poor regeneration = aging & disease. It really is that simple.
Do cannabinoids affect sleep cycles?
Research shows that your body’s circadian rhythm — you know, the thing that controls your sleep cycles — is tied into your body’s endocannabinoid system. In theory, anything that affects one system could easily affect the other. It turns out that the endocannabinoid system may help keep your circadian rhythm more regular. It may also set the stage for restful, pleasant dreams. [3][4]
So, can cannabinoids impact your sleep? You bet they can! Cannabinoids bind to their receptors almost like iron binds to magnets, and that allows them to influence sleep in several different ways. More on how CBD might influence your sleep next.
5 of the best pro-sleep substances
CBD isn’t the only natural substance that could help you sleep better, of course. Below are five of our top favorites.
- CBD
- GABA
- Melatonin
- Chamomile
- Passionflower
CBD
By activating your endocannabinoid system’s CB2 receptors, CBD may help promote sleep and regeneration. This concept has finally begun receiving validation from the medical community in recent years. A first-of-its-kind 2019 study found that CBD may: [5]
- Increase sleep duration
- Decrease cortisol levels
- Lead to higher levels of relaxation
- Be most relaxing at high doses
While countless CBD users report that the compound helped them sleep better, there’s another key concept you may want to keep in mind: poor sleep may reduce the benefits of CBD? In other words, the pathways CBD works through can flow in either direction. One study found that sleep restriction could lower your body’s endocannabinoid levels, which implies that those low on sleep need more CBD to get the same effects as others. [6]
To put these findings into simpler terms, CBD shouldn’t be used as a band aid solution to make up for lost sleep. That strategy probably wouldn’t work — and even if it did, it would be pricey.
Medterra’s Deep Sleep Gummies contain 30 milligrams of full spectrum hemp extract each: 25mg of CBD, 2mg of THC, and 3mg of ‘trace’ cannabinoids. (They also feature a balanced dose of melatonin, but more on that later.)
GABA
Gamma-aminobutyric acid, or GABA for short, is an amino acid that doubles as a neurotransmitter. Neurologists refer to GABA as the internal ‘brake’ of your brain. Why? Because GABA can slow down everything from anxiety and depression to the stress response. [7]
GAGA is also known for its ability to promote deeper, more restorative sleep. While low GABA levels can lead to insomnia, staying GABA replete means you’ll probably be able to sleep soundly throughout the night.
Medterra’s Good Night Capsules contain a hefty serving of GABA for these very reasons.
Our capsules also feature CBD, of course, resulting in a multifaceted product designed to help you get the good night’s sleep you deserve.
Melatonin
Melatonin is one of your body’s most important sleep hormones. Made by your pineal gland each morning and released by the same gland each night, melatonin basically controls the timing of your sleep cycles. It controls them so well, in fact, that it can be used to overcome jet lag!
Our Deep Sleep Gummies provide 3 milligrams of melatonin each. That’s not enough to cause dependency or side effects, but it might just be enough to help you sleep better. This moderate dose is featured alongside a much higher dose of cannabinoids. Why’d we choose this combo? Think of it this way: melatonin promotes better sleep ASAP, while CBD may help your endocannabinoid system to promote better sleep in the long run.
Chamomile
Chamomile has long been regarded as a natural sedative, and modern science has just begun to show why. Chamomile contains a special antioxidant called apigenin. This compound binds to brain receptors that may reduce anxiousness and help you fully unwind before sleep. [8]
Medterra’s Sleep Tight CBD Gummies feature chamomile alongside lemon balm and a host of other pro-sleep botanicals. If you really want to go all out, you can pair any of our CBD products with a cup of warm chamomile tea.
Passionflower
Like chamomile, passionflower has a long track record of improving sleep quality. A 2011 study of 40 adults confirmed what the ancients knew about this special botanical: it’s capable of resolving insomnia fast. [9] Other studies show that a passionflower + valerian + hops trio might be just as effective as Ambien when it comes to enhancing sleep quality. [10]
Our Sleep Tight CBD Gummies include both chamomile and passionflower. The results of this botanical combo speak for themselves. Of 114 customers we surveyed:
- 98% reported experiencing better sleep
- 86% reported waking up refreshed
- 86% reported falling asleep faster
5 natural ways to fall asleep: summing things up
- CBD
- GABA
- Melatonin
- Chamomile
- Passionflower
Well, there you have it! Any and all of the above compounds may help you fall asleep (and stay asleep) the natural way. Try them one by one if you’d like, or feel free to go with a botanical product that contains all five. We think you’ll like your newfound sleep habits either way.
