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Ask HN: Relation Coffee VS Sleep

by phzbOx on 2/19/12, 3:29 AM with 7 comments

• by DanBC on 2/19/12, 5:04 AM

  Anecdotally: I feel like small amounts of caffeine after about 3pm destroy my sleep.

  I practice "sleep hygiene" (UK NHS websites have a lot about this) and if that fails I get a short prescription for one of the Z drugs, usually 7 days of zopiclone, to 'kick' my sleep back into a pattern.

  There are considerable problems with use of melatonin: It's not regulated in the US which means you will find it hard to accurately dose and the research suggests it's pretty lousy, unless you have jet lag. I'm in the UK, and melatonin is a prescription only medication, and GPs will usually not prescribe it for sleep disorders.

  http://summaries.cochrane.org/CD001520/melatonin-for-the-pre...

  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1370957/

  http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/epcsums/melatsum.htm

• by littledude on 2/19/12, 3:59 PM

  the half-life of caffeine is about 5hrs and there's around 260mg in a 12oz coffee. you'd probably want to stop drinking after the first few hours of your day so it's mostly out of your system by the time you go to sleep.

• by davyjones on 2/19/12, 5:20 AM

  My trick: run everyday and limit chai to two mugs a day.

• by heretohelp on 2/19/12, 4:40 AM

  Coffee in proximity of sleep-time will keep me up all night because I have a messed up circadian rhythm as it is (28 hours).

  I usually "downgrade" to tea later in the day and maintain a consistent melatonin regimen. Melatonin is well-attested in its ability to improve sleep quality:

  http://www.ahrq.gov/clinic/epcsums/melatsum.htm

  I wouldn't count on the efficacy of melatonin unless you are sleeping 6-8 hours a night and are otherwise healthy and devoid of a sleep disorder.

  People like to mention vitamin D, but taking it as a supplement is correlated with worse sleep, not better. As a counter-suggestion to vitamin D supplementation I would avoid artificial light exposure (use Flux if possible) after sunset as well. (This has been shown to produce delayed onset sleep patterns.)

  That's the only real factual data I have for this, I would avoid relying on anecdote.

  This was not medical advice, just a citation of facts.