The ITV regular claimed that people may find themselves facing this late night issue
People who find themselves waking up often in the middle of the night might not realise that something medical could be preventing them from having unbroken sleep. An ITV doctor has claimed that some simple, non-medicated techniques could help.
Dr Amir Khan recently discussed cortisol levels on his podcast, No Appointment Necessary, which prompted a question from a listener. They said: “Dr Amir said that [cortisol] levels begin to rise between 2 and 4am, and can cause waking. Can you explain what to do about this please? I think this may be causing my poor sleep pattern.”
What is cortisol?
Cortisol is a hormone made in a gland found just above the kidneys, and is responsible for regulating adrenal and stress responses in the body. As well as managing blood pressure and how the body uses glucose for energy, this centre is also what controls our sleep-wake cycle.
The Cleveland Clinic reported that: “Most people have lower cortisol levels in the evening when they go to sleep. And they have peak levels in the morning, right before they wake up. This suggests that cortisol plays a key role in your circadian rhythm and how your body wakes up.”
Under typical conditions, cortisol starts to rise between 2 and 3am, increasing gradually until it peaks about 30 to 45 minutes after you wake up. This rise helps your body prepare for the day by increasing alertness, blood sugar, and energy availability.
How to fix the problem?
Responding to the issue at hand, Dr Khan, who regularly appears on ITV daytime programmes like Lorraine and Good Morning Britain, said: “Cortisol rising helps us all to wake up in the morning. The problem [this listener] might have is that she could have chronically raised cortisol levels, which then go even higher during that time period, and that is what’s waking her up.
“You need to identify what might be causing your higher than normal levels of cortisol. And, usually, that’s chronic stress. Things like work, it could be family, you could be in a caring role, whatever that is. If you are waking up that early in the morning, it’s probably because you’ve got abnormally high levels of cortisol.”
Dr Khan added: “If it’s something you can’t get away from, because often that is the case, then you need to look at relaxation techniques before you go to bed. Whether that’s breathing exercises, time in nature, meditation or just a hot bath where you have a few minutes to yourself, those are the kinds of things that [they] need to be doing.”
Other suggestions elsewhere claim that certain lifestyle changes might help, such as eating a balanced diet rich in whole foods, getting moderate exercise, and maintaining healthy social connections. People have been advised to limit caffeine and sugar as these substances are stimulants which can elevate cortisol levels.
If lifestyle changes don’t help, speak to your GP. They can perform blood or saliva tests to check your cortisol levels. If a medical condition is causing high cortisol (like Cushing’s Syndrome), treatment may involve medication or surgery.
