Blog — Sleep Essentials
3 Ways to Avoid Seasonal Affect Disorder
Daylight Savings Time is here and we are all getting less sun! This could bring on Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) and the pandemic is probably not helping! SAD can make you feel low and can affect your mood, sleep, appetite, and energy levels. We need to watch out for it because it can also impact your relationships, social life, work, and/or school. Yikes! So what causes SAD? Research shows that during the shorter, darker days of winter, we get the double whammy of not getting enough Serotonin and too much Melatonin. Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that influences mood. Melatonin is a...
Simone Wan
Mocktails with An Immune-Boosting Punch
Just like so many of you, I enjoy a really good glass of wine or a cocktail! For me, having a drink signals fun, reward and relaxation. And these days, we may also find ourselves reaching for our go-to alcoholic beverage to help reduce stress and anxiety, and to help us relax. What we might not know, though, is that even small amounts of alcohol—1 drink in an hour—has an impact on the body’s functions and can reduce the function of our immune system. The body and our livers go into overdrive to process the alcohol, which negatively impacts its...
Simone Wan
What is Melatonin Really Doing to My Body Anyways?
Melatonin is in almost every sleep aid we see on the market today. But what is melatonin really and how does it work? Melatonin is a hormone that naturally occurs in the body. It’s produced by the pineal gland and sends a signal to regulate the sleep-wake cycle—your circadian rhythm. Melatonin levels go up at night to tell your body that it’s nighttime and it’s time to go to bed. Melatonin levels lower in the early morning to tell your body that it is time to wake up. So a melatonin supplement is a synthetic form of the natural hormone produced...
Simone Wan Moran
5 Ways to Naturally Boost your Dopamine
You’ve heard of dopamine but what exactly is it, why do we need it and how do we get more of it? Dopamine is a chemical in your brain that plays a role in the regulation of cognition, memory, motivation, mood, attention and learning. It also aids in decision-making and sleep regulation. So I don’t know about you, but I need lots of dopamine in my day to keep me going! Unfortunately, certain lifestyle factors and medical conditions can interfere with our happy dopamine levels. How do you know you’re low on dopamine? Do you have loss of pleasure in...
Simone Wan Moran
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