Bone Weary

Bad sleep? I understand. For many years my typical night was really a series of short naps, with lots of thinking time in between. I welcomed the morning light, not because I felt rested, but so I could call an end to the futility of trying to sleep. My days were foggy, my head ached, my immune system was low, and the irritating people around me thought I was the grumpy one! I really understand the disability of poor sleep.

Dr. Stasha Gominak is an American neurologist whose practice developed around poor sleepers like I was. In the course of treating chronic pain, she discovered that for most of her patients the root cause of their pain would heal if they could sleep well. Although her starting point to improve their nights was sleep apnea machines and sleeping drugs, she found that optimal healing only followed when she could restore natural sleep – which means the right amounts of time in the proper cycles, without drugs or breathing aids. How did she accomplish that?

First, she identified, to her surprise, that all her patients with abnormal sleep were deficient in vitamin D. She discovered that by raising their vitamin D levels she improved their sleep. What’s not to love about a vitamin that helps us sleep?

Her patients didn’t heal right away, though. Then she found the next missing piece: these same patients were also deficient in B vitamins! What was the link to vitamin D? It turns out that the healthy bacteria in our intestines rely on vitamin D in order to make the B vitamins we need. Not enough D? We run out of the B family, and end up with a secondary B deficiency.

What do B vitamins do? The family of B vitamins are needed throughout the body, acting as cofactors for countless metabolic and neurologic processes. They’re essential for the widespread repair work that is supposed to happen while we sleep. We need good D levels in order to sleep deeply, but we need the B family to heal. The more our bodies are affected by inflammation and disease, the more support we need from B vitamins. Not enough B vitamins? Our bodies will succumb to pain, autoimmune conditions, and even mental decline.

Which brings me to osteoporosis. As I’ve written before, we must have optimal D levels in order to properly mineralize our bones. In fact, Dr. Gominak calls osteoporosis a vitamin D deficiency state! Calcium and magnesium, along with the other minerals, won’t settle into their proper places without the support of vitamin D. But a shortage of B vitamins will throw off the delicate dance of the osteoclasts and osteoblasts – cells that clean away old bone while building new bone – and our bones won’t be able to maintain or repair. There really is a scientific explanation to feeling tired right to the bone.

As I’ve described in earlier posts, I made some major nutritional changes in response to my osteoporosis diagnosis. These included raising my vitamin B and D levels, as well as eliminating foods that inhibited my nutrient absorptions. I expected my bones to fare better, but it was an incredible surprise and blessing when I found I was also sleeping well – every night!

So following the cues from Dr. Gominak – and countless other researchers – have a blood test to check your vitamin D level. If your level is low, you can take steps to raise it into a healthy range with a combination of supplements and safe sun exposure. That should improve your sleep. Next, consider taking a vitamin B complex supplement. Your whole body will thank you.