Dr. Matthew Walker — All Things Sleep (Weight Gain, Alzheimer’s Disease, Caffeine, and More)

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Dr. Matthew Walker, All Things Sleep — How to Improve Sleep, How Sleep Ties Into Alzheimer’s Disease and Weight Gain, and How Medications (Ambien, Trazodone, etc.), Caffeine, THC/CBD, Psychedelics, Exercise, Smart Drugs, Fasting, and More Affect Sleep

Matthew Walker Ph.D. (@sleepdiplomat) is professor of neuroscience at the University of California Berkeley and founder and director of the school’s Center for Human Sleep Science. Walker is the author of The New York Times and international bestseller Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams which was recently listed by Bill Gates as one of his top five books of the year. His TED Talk, “Sleep is Your Superpower,” has garnered more than 17 million views.

He has received numerous funding awards from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health and is a Kavli Fellow of the National Academy of Sciences. In 2020, Walker was awarded the Carl Sagan Prize for Science Achievements. Walker’s research examines the impact of sleep on human health and disease. He has been featured on numerous television and radio outlets including CBS’ “60 Minutes,” National Geographic Channel, NOVA Science, NPR, and the BBC. He is also the host of the 5-star-rated podcast The Matt Walker Podcast, which is all about sleep, the brain, and the body.

Please enjoy!

00:00 Start
01:37 Sleep and Alzheimer’s disease.
14:50 What causes the decline of deep sleep as we age?
19:38 Are there any known species that don’t require sleep?
24:21 Brain stimulation for more deep sleep, less insomnia.
35:08 Tips for better sleep without laboratory budget or access.
46:18 Ideal types of exercise for promoting deep sleep.
48:31 Matt’s updated thoughts on caffeine and sleep.
01:06:52 Cannabis (CBD, THC, CBN) and sleep.
01:26:58 A crowdsourcing request from listeners.
01:33:10 If the bed’s a-rocking…
01:39:25 The Da Vinci Code magic sleep device.
01:43:21 DARPA innovation.
01:43:51 Ensuring proper function in the glymphatic system.
01:48:19 Psychedelics and sleep.
01:59:35 How sleep affects food intake and weight fluctuation.
02:09:23 Orexin, I reckon.
02:21:18 Fainting goats and narcolepsy.
02:24:48 Modafinil.
02:29:58 How sleep medications affect sleep quality.
02:35:58 Trazodone.
02:43:31 Serotonin type 2A antagonism.
02:46:37 Perilous polypharmacy.
02:49:22 Pregabalin and gabapentin.
02:55:17 The psychological value of emergency sleep medicine for insomniacs.
02:59:09 CBTI and the balancing role of pharmacology.
3:00:46 Parting thoughts and what to expect from a future round two.

Resources from the episode: https://tim.blog/2023/01/18/matthew-walker-sleep/

Tim Ferriss is one of Fast Company’s “Most Innovative Business People” and an early-stage tech investor/advisor in Uber, Facebook, Twitter, Shopify, Duolingo, Alibaba, and 50+ other companies. He is also the author of five #1 New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestsellers: The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, The 4-Hour Chef, Tools of Titans and Tribe of Mentors. The Observer and other media have named him “the Oprah of audio” due to the influence of his podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, which has exceeded 900 million downloads and been selected for “Best of Apple Podcasts” three years running.

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DISCLAIMER: I’m not a doctor, nor do I play one on the Internet. None of the content in this podcast constitutes medical advice. Please consult your doctor before considering anything we discuss in this episode.