Matthew Walker is adamant: "Sleep medication (of chemical composition) deteriorates sleep and has many health drawbacks and is addictive. Sleep medication sedates the body and therefore sleep cycles are not activated. Medication is counterproductive in this".
Natural sleep aids
There are several natural sleep remedies that work effectively for sleep problems. The advantage is that these are non-addictive and have hardly any side effects. The disadvantage is that there are a lot of remedies to try out and oral intake proves to be little effective. Only ±15% of substances reach their destination (bloodstream).
The big difference: oral (pills) versus transdermal (patch)
Nutritional supplements are usually taken orally. Scientific research shows that oral intake creates a 'First-Pass-Effect'. This means that the body breaks down ±85% of the ingested substances via the intestines, kidneys and liver, among others. This is referred to as a bioavailability of 15%. In other words, only ±15% enters the bloodstream and is therefore active.
Via transdermal administration (i.e. through the skin), there is no First-Pass-Effect, as the substances enter the bloodstream directly through the skin. Moreover, this occurs within 5 minutes, whereas with oral intake it can take several hours. As a result, absorbability has increased from 15% to 65%. This makes it not only 4x more effective, but actually 4x cheaper. Another advantage; you don't have to take something 3x a day, because the patches work 'slow release'. This means that the patch releases the substances gradually. This means there are no peaks or troughs in the blood, so the effect is also more even and constant.
Transdermal administration is therefore more effective, easier and more economical!
Sleep medication & remedies
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