If you’re one of those struggling to sleep, you’re not alone. According to the Cleveland Clinic, you can be diagnosed with any of the eighty recognized sleeping disorders. Meanwhile, over 70 million have at least one of them.

However, if you’re more restless and sleepless the past few months, perhaps you have the pandemic to blame.

The effects of coronavirus pandemic indeed go beyond economics and macro healthcare. People can also feel them as soon as they lie in bed. But how can a health crisis cause a sleeping disorder, especially insomnia?

The Causes of Coronasomnia

Although it’s not an official diagnosis, experts coin the growing sleeping disorder as coronasomnia. Many factors may be causing it:

• Sudden changes in schedules (e.g., from office to work-from-home setup)
• Extreme mental, emotional, and financial stress
• Anxiety and depression usually due to isolation
• Disruption in personal and working lives
• Excessive screen time

The lack of easy or enough access to natural light may also be a culprit. The body’s circadian rhythm responds to the light it perceives. During the daytime, sunlight triggers the release of hormones such as cortisol that help keep you alert, energetic, and focused.

When nighttime comes, cortisol levels decline while melatonin increases. This latter hormone promotes calmness and relaxation to help you prepare for good sleep.

However, the coronavirus pandemic could be forcing more families to spend more time indoors. Couple that with winter, and the amount of sunlight available further decreases.

Moreover, many studies already show that mobile devices can emit blue light that could disrupt the sleep cycle. It may be strong enough to prevent the body from producing melatonin.

How Coronasomnia Makes Poor Health Worse

In general, sleep deprivation hurts your physical health in many ways:

• It can increase the risk of low-grade chronic inflammation. This one can potentially damage your heart and even your DNA in the long-term.
• It leads to gut dysbiosis. More types of research highlight the significant role your gut microbiome plays in keeping you healthy. Unfortunately, lack of sleep can change its composition and diversity. In turn, it can threaten your well-being.
• It lowers your immune system. People who suffer from sleep problems are often prone to infections. One possible reason is that sleep deprivation can decrease the production of T cells that help mount an immune response against “invaders.”

A lack of sleep is perilous in the midst of the pandemic. COVID-19 is a novel viral infection, which means (1) it is so new the body doesn’t have any defense against it, and (2) it cannot be cured by antibiotics. Unless a person has the vaccine already, the best defense is their immune system.

Sleep deprivation can therefore decrease your arsenal against the virus. It could be much worse if you already have preexisting conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, and heart disorders. When you don’t get enough sleep, the risk of inflammation increases.

What Can Help You Sleep These Days?

The good news is sleeplessness is both manageable and treatable. The most common insomnia therapies are also likely to work for you if you’re dealing with the same problem. You can also explore other less-known but potentially effective options:

1. Use CBD Oil

You can buy CBD oil for sale and apply it topically on your head or use it as an ingredient for a bath bomb or massage oil.

Some studies suggest that CBD (which doesn’t have THC that makes you high) can:

• Help reduce your feelings of depression or anxiety, which can be one of the causes of coronasomnia
• Decrease body pain, which is sometimes associated with long periods of sleep deprivation
• Promote wakefulness and increase your focus

2. Invest in a Weighted Blanket

Weighted blankets provide warmth and decrease the severity of anxiety by as much as 50% compared to those who don’t use them, according to a Swedish study.

The research further revealed that these blankets could reduce daytime sleepiness and enhance the quality of sleep. Users also reported reduced feelings of fatigue. They were also over 15 times more likely to experience a remission in insomnia and maintain it by 12 months.

The team believed that the weighted blankets created sensations similar to those in massage or acupressure. In turn, they decrease the part of the nervous system that often arises during stress.

Changing your sleeping habits during this pandemic won’t be easy, but you have several options to manage it the way you want it.

Are you thinking of trying natural collagen supplements? These supplements don’t contain synthetic additives and are considered to be the best kind for your body. You might be wondering why people buy collagen supplements online. What are the advantages of taking natural collagen supplements? That’s the question this article is here to answer Read on to find out how buying collagen supplements online could improve your life and health.

Beautiful Skin

One aspect of your skin which is part of its structural underpinning is collagen. This means that choosing to have natural collagen supplements regularly could have a very beneficial effect on the appearance of your skin. Collagen can help strengthen the skin, making it more elastic and hydrated. This is an important point, as skin creates less collagen for itself as you get older, and less collagen can result in drier skin and the development of more wrinkles. In some studies, natural collagen supplements have been shown to help slow the aging process of the skin, with less wrinkles and dryness. So if you’re starting to get older and are worried about wrinkles, taking a collagen supplement could help.

Joint Pain Relief

Collagen is related to the health of your cartilage, which is the rubbery stuff that covers your joints and gives them insulation from rubbing and shocks. Unfortunately, as mentioned above, the amount of collagen in the body becomes lower as you age, meaning that there is less available for use by your cartilage. Correspondingly, your cartilage isn’t as effective as it used to be, and so as you age you will experience a higher risk of joint disorders, such as osteoarthritis. If you’re experiencing joint pain or even osteoarthritis, it’s well worth buying some collagen supplements online and seeing if you notice any difference in your pain levels. Studies have shown that there is evidence natural collagen supplements may help to reduce joint related pain.

Increased Bone Density

This may surprise you, but a major component of your bones is collagen. It aids in keeping bones strong and structurally sound. With the decrease in collagen over a lifetime, bone mass can also decline. Low bone density can follow, along with greater chance of bone fractures and conditions like osteoporosis. Studies show that taking natural collagen supplements may increase bone density and therefore contribute to keeping bones strong and healthy. If you’re concerned about your bone mass, or if you know you have osteoporosis in your family, you may wish to start buying collagen supplements online.

Increased Muscle Mass

Collagen makes up between one and ten per cent of muscle tissue. That may not sound like a lot, but it does make a difference, helping your muscles stay strong and functional. There have been studies done which show how patients with sarcopenia (muscle loss with age) have benefited from taking natural collagen supplements. If you wish to have stronger and more prominent muscles, a collagen supplement could be the difference you’ve been looking for.

Call it vanity, call it denial, call it anything, but fact is, no one wants to age, especially ‘visibly’ age. While it is possible to cover up the creaking bones and fix diet to stay healthy, but the face gives it all away.

As we age, so do our skin cells. The essential skin proteins do not get produced in the same amounts as during youth. Consequently, skin sags, gets wrinkling and texture becomes perpetual. 

Whereas a timely visit to the Dermatologist in Lahore can save you from the scampering from antiaging tips later on, but also remember the following very important antiaging tips as well:

Do not skimp on the sunscreen

Sun is a lot of things, but not a friend to the skin. It contains radiations that damage the skin cells and cause premature aging, referred to as photoaging. From wrinkles to textured skin, sun is a gift that keeps giving!

Hence, it is important to wear sunscreen daily. Even if its cloudy, wear it; radiation is still present even if its overcast. Moreover, it is important to replenish the SPF after every two hours. 

When buying the sunscreen, be sure to pick the broad spectrum one and one with SPF at least 30+.

Catch your sleep

Beauty sleep is an ancient concept that is still going strong, and rightfully so. Perhaps due to the busy life we lead today, getting adequate sleep is perceived as a luxury reserved only for the weekends. 

However, considering the benefits and essentiality of sleep, it should be a priority. From physical to mental health, it is crucial for the body to function well in all domains. Moreover, sufficient sleep also helps your skin stay youthful. 

When we sleep, our cells perform the repair and maintenance duties and thus, when we don’t sleep well, our facial skin cells do not heal properly, leading to signs of aging. So, try getting at least 7-9 hours of sleep daily. 

Antioxidants are your friend

Free radicals are chemicals produced by the body in response to essential chemical reactions and other environmental factors. Usually, antioxidants help counter these damaging chemicals in the body. However, when there are less antioxidants as opposed to free radicals, body experiences what is known as oxidative stress. 

From life threatening conditions like cancer to aging, oxidative stress poses all sorts of problems. Hence, consuming and using antioxidants is essential. 

Antioxidants also help protect the collagen levels and thus, by extension, slow down aging as well. 

Eating a balanced diet full of natural fruits and vegetables like mangoes, citrus fruits, green leafy vegetables can help restore balance in the body. However, oral supplement so antioxidants are also available. 

Furthermore, many topical antioxidant treatment options are also easily available. Using these will protect the skin from signs of aging. 

Massage your face 

Massaging is not just super relaxing, but when done right, it also helps in preventing the signs of aging. 

It helps in improving the circulation to the facial skin cells, which get adequate nourishment that keeps them healthy. Oxygen that comes with better circulation also helps to increase the production of collagen. 

Massage also helps to relax muscles; tensed muscles are more likely to cause wrinkling of the skin. It also aids in the absorption of the serums and skin treatment products better into the skin. 

Exfoliate thy face 

As we age, the cell turnover also decreases. Hence, the dead skin cells just keep piling on top of each other as they are not replaced quick enough. This layer of dead skin causes the complexion to become dull. It also prevents your skin care products from easily penetrating into the skin. 

Exfoliation, on the other hand, takes things in its own hands. It removes the dead skin cells, restoring the youthful glow. Moreover, it also helps the antiaging serums and potions to penetrate into the skin, better. 

Collagen is what you need

Collagen is an important protein found in the skin. It helps to keep the skintight and bouncy. However, as we age, the collagen production also decreases. And thus, skin starts to sag and get wrinkly. 

It is however, possible to preserve the collagen in the body. One trick is to eat plenty of protein as collagen is a protein! Another is to take plenty of antioxidants. 

The collagen supplements and potions however are heavily contested. Since we cannot dictate how our body consumes the food eaten, hence, oral supplement and be utilized any which way by the body. Also, creams are also not effective as a collagen particle is too big to be simply absorbed into the skin. So, do not invest too much in these products. 

Aesthetic procedures like microneedling and collagen fillers have shown much more promising results. Consult the best Dermatologist in Karachi about which procedure should you go for youthful skin!