Sleepiness after meals can be a sign of Arteriosclerosis!

​I would like to share what I learned recently.

Arteriosclerosis is hardening of the arteries which is the condition that cholesterol and calcium accumulate in the arteries, making the arteries hard or damaged. Arteriosclerosis can cause a heart attack and stroke.

People often feel sleepy after meals because when you have foods in your stomach, the blood gathers to the stomach, decreasing blood in the brain and you feel sleepy. But there is a dangerous kind of sleepiness after meals.

Carotid sinus is a kind of a sensor to measure the blood pressure in the carotid artery (artery in the neck). If the carotid sinus detects a drop in the blood pressure, it makes the heart rate faster to increase the blood flow to send more blood to the brain. But if there is arteriosclerosis in the carotid artery, the carotid sinus can’t detect the blood pressure, causing a drop in the blood pressure. At that time, you feel sleepy like you faint.

People who experience sleepiness after meals like “Time flies for a while” can have huge drop in the blood pressure after meals.

When there is more than 20 mmHg difference between before and 1 hour after a meal in your blood pressure, that can be a sign of arteriosclerosis in your carotid artery. If you feel sleepy after meals, please check your blood pressure before and 1 hour after meals. If you are healthy, there should not be a huge drop in the blood pressure.