Struggling to sleep? Dr Jonathan Tham talks insomnia to the BBC
Recently our sleep expert Dr Jonathan Tham contributed to the What in the World podcast, hosted by the BBC World Service, on their deep dive into sleep. He explained what effect insomnia had on our health and wellbeing.
“If you don’t sleep during the night, you can’t process the things you’ve done during the day. You can’t lay down the memories of the new things that you’ve done, and you may be more affected by any traumatic experiences that have happened.
“We also know sleep is important for our immune system, so if you don’t get enough, you may not be able to throw off those pesky colds as easily, and you may not respond to vaccines as well.
“During the day, toxins can build up in our brain. These are removed during sleep, and there’s some evidence to suggest that if they’re not, we may be more at risk for conditions like Alzheimer’s disease later in life.
“Quite apart from all of this, your brain knows just how important sleep is and if you don’t get it one night then the next day, it will make you feel exhausted to encourage you to get more.”
The impact of insomnia on your health and wellbeing
And, earlier this month, Dr Tham was interviewed by Simon Parkin on BBC Radio Somerset, giving listeners his advice on everything sleep-related and why it’s important to seek help.
“Your GP should take sleep issues seriously because all GPs recognise the importance of sleep; not only in terms of the distress it can cause if you don’t have enough of it, but also its impact on other conditions as well.
“We know that for people who sleep very poorly for a long time, it can start to affect things like your blood pressure and blood sugars. I would hope your GP would prioritise sleep as something that has a wide impact on all parts of your life and health.”
In both radio and podcast, Dr Tham talks of the possible links between dementia and sleep loss. This is a difficult topic and information can seem confusing due to the growing research. If you’re interested, take a look at Jonathan’s article.
Insomnia is a common and devastating problem. At the heart of Dr Jonathan Tham’s approach to sleep issues is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBTi). This gold standard treatment improves sleep by building understanding, and changing behaviour and thinking, without the need for sleeping tablets.
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