Sweet DreamsMillions of people have difficulties in having a good night’s sleep. Insomnia is the inability to sleep either regularly at night.

Reasons for insomnia vary such as:

 

Daily stressors e.g. jobs, relationship issues,

Illness

Medication

Anxiety

Depression

And much more

 

For generations mothers have given their children a glass of warm milk to help them sleep, but is there any complementary medicine research that supports this age-old practice.

Milk has been shown to contain several beneficial bioactive peptides that support healthy and natural sleep cycles. These short chain amino acids known as bioactive peptides has a sedative effect and brings about sustained sleep patterns.

These bioactive peptides act on the brain’s GABA-A receptors. The main role of GABA is to calm the nervous system. The body’s main excitatory neurotransmitter (Glutamate) is most active during your waking hours. However, when you fall asleep brain Glutamate levels decrease and GABA levels increase. So any agent that induces GABA levels will facilitate a great restful night’s sleep.

The advantage of these milk peptides, of course, is that they induce relaxation and sleep without the side effects associated with long-term use of sleep medication.

Milk has been advocated for sleep for thousands of years in traditional medicine system of Ayurveda. Ayurveda suggests that chronic stress depletes ojas. Ojas is a precious substance that is produced in the body from the subtle level of digestion which is related to vitality and immunity. Ojas can be found in several types of food, however the main form of ojas is present in milk.

A recipe designed to boost ojas level and support healthy sleeping pattern is one that is listed below. For individuals whom do not consume milk, alternatives of coconut and almonds can be used instead.

Recipe First, bring one cup of milk to boil. During the

simmering procedure add the following ingredients; chopped dates (1 tbsp) chopped almonds (2 tsp) coconut meat or flakes (1 tbsp) saffron (1/2 tsp) ghee (1-2 tsp) and cardamom (1/8 tsp).

Each of these ingredients in this ancient recipe adds further health enhancing properties which have also been proven in complementary medicine research; see smartphone health app Apple A Day RX.

THANKS