According to the book, Patient, Heal Thyself:

"Ground-breaking research on health and regeneration shows that sleep before midnight is up to four times more beneficial than sleep after midnight. The book goes on to state, "It is important to note that in Biblical times, and throughout ancient history, people would rise and retire with the setting of the sun. I believe this is the healthiest way for us to function today, resulting in improved digestion, immune system health, and mood. It is my experience that the amount and quality of your sleep, as well as the times you retire and rise, are as important to your health as diet, supplements and exercise."

That's quite a statement, and I agree with the author, Jordan Rubin. Rubin is not a raw foodist; however, his company, Garden of Life, emphasizes the importance of enzymes and the health of the gastrointestinal tract. I've read lots of different health/nutrition books over the years. About a year ago, I read Patient, Heal Thyself because it arrived free of charge with a Garden of Life order that I had placed through Nutrition Warehouse Outlet.

Frederic Patenaude also emphasizes the importance of sleep in his book, The Raw Secrets. Here is a brief excerpt:

"Sleep and rest are essential to recharge our nervous energy. Our physical, emotional, and mental balance depends on the quality and quantity of our sleep. Work and play are great, but it also puts a demand on the body, dissipates our energy, and fills our tissues with toxins. Rest is the only thing that recharges these 'batteries' and allows for proper elimination of metabolic wastes (toxins)." Frederic lists "lack of sleep" (or lack of quality sleep) as one of the most common mistakes made by raw foodists.

Going to bed too late at night is a bad habit of mine.

Other Common Mistakes Made by Raw Foodists (According to Frederic Patenaude):

• Eating too many nuts
• Drinking large quantities of juices
• Sleeping not enough or at irregular hours, thinking that because they are raw-foodists they will escape the consequences.
• Eating a lot of oil
• Eating too many avocados
• Constantly worrying and thinking about food
• Overeating acid fruit
• Overeating dried fruit (causes cavities, causes blood sugar to rise)
• Paying no attention to digestion, dismissing hygienic food combining and eating complex mixtures (i.e. super-fancy raw food recipes).

I really enjoy reading Frederic's material because he's refreshingly honest and tells it like it is. I especially like the fact that he emphasizes simplicity (in raw food recipes–no "combo-abombos") and proper food combining.

More information on Frederic's book, The Raw Secrets.

Herbert Shelton's thoughts on sleep:

"The mode of living in this age produces such a waste of power and such a sense of weariness that only the limited few ever know the supreme delights and the enviable luxury of power in reserve. They keep up their semblance of vigor by means of stimulation and seldom take sufficient time to re-charge their vital or nervous batteries. Nights are turned into day, while mental and nervous poise is exceedingly rare. All poison habits, all excesses, the indulgence of any or all the passions constitute distinct drains upon the vital resources, and are sources of diminished vitality, crippled usefulness, and shortened life."

–Herbert Shelton (published in Orthobionomics, and republished in The Raw Secrets).