Master Your Sleep & Be More Alert When Awake

Today's episode provides a host of information on what makes us sleepy, sleep soundly, and feel awake and alert. It covers a broad range of tools for anyone wishing to improve their sleep and wakeful state. The science and logic for each tool is described. Please put your questions related to Episodes 1 & 2 in the comments section below so I can address them in Episode 3 "Office Hours".

Note: a special episode devoted to shift workers and jetlag is coming out soon.

As always, thank you for your interest in science!

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Timestamps can be found below:
Introduction - 0:00
What Is Sleep Really For? - 3:30
Sleep Hunger - 6:15
Caffeine: Devil & Angel - 9:00
Timing Your Sleep Properly - 12:20
Release Your Hormones (At The Right Times) - 14:15
(Pineal) Melatonin Warning - 18:45
Strange Vision Is Good Vision - 24:30
Blue Light Is Great! - 32:50
The Real Problem With Smartphones - 37:00
Blind / Low Vision People - 38:30
Using Exercise & Food To Set Your Clock - 39:45
The Power of Sunset - 42:00
The Healthy Holes In Your Skull - 46:43
Bad Light - 48:15
Light Location - 51:11
Fire / Candlelight - 53:00
When To Eat - 54:00
How To Wake Up Earlier - 55:40
Using The Body To Control The Mind - 1:08:00
Drugs & Supplements - 1:10:00
Sleep Walking - 1:18:00
Office Hours - 1:20:00

Links to several of the tools mentioned in this episode are listed below:

#HubermanLab #Science #Sleep

The Huberman Lab podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no doctor/patient relationship is formed. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions.

[hubermanlab]

Please put your questions related to Episodes 1 & 2 in the comments section below so I can address them in Episode 3 "Office Hours". Thank you!

[pavlenikolic]

Imagine if school was all about these interesting subjects that would help us be better and healthier..

[jordan]

I can already tell that this is gonna be my new favourite podcast

[justinhalloran]

Andrews passion for sharing his knowledge is incredible and super motivating!

[davidtsw]

So true about the night owls. I´ve struggled getting up early and going to bed early for almost my entire life. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn´t force myself into a more typical schedule. 3 am to 11 am or so would be my preferred sleep schedule. I had given up hope of ever being able to consistently get up early and feel refreshed throughout the day. Until I started getting that morning light. A week in and there´s no going back for me. It really is night and day difference for me, no pun intended.

[brocco]

I can count the people with real solutions to today’s problems on one hand. This man is physically making the world a better place on a potentially colossal scale. Thank you.

[laurenh]

I'm impressed by your impeccable diction and would love to learn how you learned the craft of public speaking, since you excel at sharing complex ideas with clarity, while not compromising the content. And your speaking skills allow you to be understood by those who don't speak English as a first language, since the pronunciation is clear. Maybe something for a random video, but it's an important skill for any scientist.

[machineelf]

Who else is watching this instead of sleeping?

[jenntown]

As a result of discovering I have one copy of the APOE4 gene I bought an Apple Watch to track my sleep- I was horrified by the VERY low results of my stage 4 sleep. After watching this podcast and applying most of the tools (including the suggested supplements) I am SO pleased to report that my average time spent in Stage 4 has increased over the past four months from an initial low of 3% to a more steady and acceptable 10%. I’m certain (given my age) this will set me up for another few years of more optimal cognitive function at least. Thank you so much Dr. Huberman for your time and knowledge!!

[CalvinHobbes]

25:40 counting dementia twice is peak dark humor

[tima]

Andrew's gaze is so intense, its like he has 23 hours of dialog queued in his brain and hes prepared to go through it with like 5 breaths

[jannatulferdousmim]

The funny thing happened to me that I actually fell asleep only after listening 20 minutes 😂😂.Had a good sleep though 😅😅. I am continuing this podcast after waking up from a good sleep.Thanks Huberman for that .His voice is so soothing ❤

[linmus]

Hands-down my favorite podcast. Thanks for educating the humanity. It means the world! 😍

[thinkamc]

Oh boy, I'm overwhelmed by how much amazing knowledge you've made accessible to the public and am excited to binge-learn from your podcasts!

[TUNEUSWellness]

This was such a great, informative episode. I took lots of notes to help incorporate this new info into my life to build a healthier lifestyle.

Sharing my notes here, hope they are helpful :)

Sleep resets the ability to be focused, alert and emotionally stable in the wakeful period.

There are 2 forces that determines sleep. Chemical forces which are adenosine, cortisol, epinephrine and adrenaline and Melatonin. And the Circadian Force which is the clock that exists in our brains that determines when we want to be sleepy or awake. Light exposure is the key driving force to setting our circadian rhythm & driving the right chemical/hormonal forces at the right times of day.

Best Waking Practices

1. Get outside upon waking (ideally within 1-2 hours of sunrise) and get light exposure to the eyes & body. (Don’t look at light if it hurts your eyes). Early in the day, your retina is not sensitive which will need a lot of photons coming from sunlight to set clock mechanisms.
2. Sunrise light intensity & color temperature (from sun being low in the sky) is ideal to set our circadian and hormonal rhythm.
3. Getting outside is ideal because the intensity of outdoor light is so much greater than indoor or screen light. (Outdoors Sunny day: 100, 000 lux, Outdoors Cloudy Day: 10, 000-50, 000 lux and Inside Bright lights: 500 – 1, 000 lux)
4. Time needed in outdoor morning light to set our body clock (Outside Sunny Day: 30-60 seconds and Outside Cloudy Day: ~5 minutes)
5. Important to be outside, viewing sunlight through a window will take 50x as long for your brain to get the necessary light information.
6. We want blue light during day, don’t wear blue light blocking glasses during the day.

Best Evening Practices

1. Get outside to see the sunset. Sun is at low solar angle and close to the horizon, drives melanopsin which signals the circadian clock that it’s the end of the day
2. Use night mode screen on your device screens (my note: F.lux program for computer)
3. Dim lights, using warmer color temperature. (my note: Philips hue)
4. Candles / Fireplace wont causing wakefulness signals (Don’t burn down house)
5. The cells in our eyes that signals the central clock resides mostly in the bottom half of our retina which means it’s viewing our upper visual field. To avoid improper activation of neurons, place light low in your physical environment, on desktops or floor.
6. It is absolutely crucial to avoid light exposure between 11pm and 4am. It will disrupt many important physiological processes that help us rest and repair.

Provide consistent powerful light anchors during the day and avoiding light at night, you get a tremendous number of positive effects on your wellbeing.

Control your sleep environment

1. Get the right light exposure at the right times
2. Have dim, low lights at night
3. Get the proper sleep surface & pillow for spine alignment (my note: organic natural material)
4. Set the right sleep temperature (my note: ~65F (18.3 degrees Celsius) )
5. Set your exercise timing to a regular period throughout the week, ideally in the morning.

Non-Sleep Deep Rest are practices that activate cells in your body that promotes the parasympathetic or calming system.

1. Yoga Nidra/Yoga Sleep (Dr. Huberman's favorite)
2. Meditation
3. Hypnosis

Recommended Sleep Drugs & Supplements

1. Magnesium - Huberman takes 300-400 mg, 30 mins before sleep (Consult doctor about appropriate dosing for you.)
2. Theanine - Take 100–200mg of theanine 30–60 minutes before bed
3. Apigenin (Can lower estrogen, women use caution) - Taking 50mg of apigenin can support the creation of sleepiness and you help fall asleep faster.

[spiritusanto]

Thank you Andrew Huberman, I've been watching your videos for about a week now you have been so helpful. I've been learning a lot and greatly appreciate and can't express enough gratitude for sharing what you've grinded for. Thank You.

[janicep]

This podcast was life-changing for me, and I mean it.
I have been struggling to fix my sleep cycle for years now and I never understood why it was so difficult for me. I tried so hard to sleep and wake up early but I could never be consistent with it. I never felt well rested when I work up early and always thought that maybe I am just a night owl. After listening to this podcast I realized I had incorporated several bad habits into my life like not getting sunlight when I wake up and exposing myself to bright screens and working late in the night, because I would start my day late and inevitably end up staying up late.

I do not have many windows in my room and my curtains are always closed which now makes so much sense why I never felt fully awake.
I read countless blogs and watched YT videos hoping I'd find a way to fix this bad habit because I could sense that this was starting to affect my lifestyle, work, and even relationships because I'd never wake up on time and make it any place on time in the mornings.

I struggled with this for years, and when you explained this, I could connect all the dots and it made me tear up Mr. Andrew, I am so so thankful to you for sharing this. I never comment on YT videos but this right here was life-changing for me and I wanted to let you know that you are a blessing in disguise for people like me. Very grateful!

When you said 'it's difficult to change your mind with your mind', it hit me so hard. I had been trying to force myself to change just mentally intending to do it but didn't know how to go about it. But with your advice, I will begin to make positive changes, and live a happy, conscious, and healthy life. Please continue to share your knowledge!

Thank you so much! ❤️

[Xavier-xbis]

This actually worked, morning light + being out at sunset + low light in the evening. Easy falling asleep. I already love this too much

[lenkafussiova]

Reviewing the talks again and again I am always touched by generosity of Dr. Andrew Huberman to open a deep knowlege for his audience and for his ability to explain the complex topic in simple, understandable way. He is the Mr.Hyperman. Thank you!

[shko-mi]

We really live in a fascinating time. Not only do we as humans possess such deep understanding of suvh niche subjects, but we are also able to condense it so well into a such an approachable format. It took lifetimes to understand every minute of information shared in this podcast.