Contents hide Better Health Better Sex Life Alleviate Pain Lower Risk of Injury Better Mood Better Weight Control Clearer Thinking Better Memory Stronger Immunity Have you ever thought why do you have to sleep? Also, … Read more
Have you ever thought why do you have to sleep? Also, have you ever wondered if an extra hour of sleep a day could make a difference in your life? Sleep expert claim that an extra hour of sleep a day can make quite a lot of difference. Studies suggest that getting enough sleep and getting too little sleep is actually the difference between staying healthy and jeopardizing your health. Lack of shuteye can significantly affect multiple aspects of your physical and mental health. It can also impact your mood, weight and even your sex life. If you are lately not getting the recommended 8 hours of sleep per night, take a look at some of the reasons you should definitely go to bed earlier tonight.
Sleeping 8 hours per night will not grant you immunity for illness. However, studies suggest that insufficient sleep can increase risks of some serious diseases and medical conditions such as heart disease, heart attack, diabetes, and obesity. Typically, a person can feel these consequences only after years of sleep loss. However, when it comes to diabetes, you have to be extra careful. A recent study simulated the effects of disturbed sleep of shift workers on ten young healthy adults. After just four days, their glucose levels have significantly increased, to a degree that it is qualified as pre-diabetic.
According to a poll we have recently conducted, around 30% of people believe their sex life is negatively affected by lack of sleep, simply because they are too tired. Some studies suggest that lack of sleep lowers the testosterone levels in men. Of course, not getting having enough time for snoozing can affect your love life in a less direct way too.
If you suffer from chronic pain, or you have suffered a recent injury, visiting the dreamland may help you alleviate pain. Some studies have shown that during sleep, our body restores and even lowers pain. It basically serves as a natural supplement medication for pain. However, it may be hard to fall asleep when you are in pain.
Sleeping 8 hours a day will keep you safer. How? Because sleep deprivation is linked with some of the most notorious disasters in the history, such as the destruction of the space shuttle Challenger. Unfortunately, one out of five car accidents in the US is caused by drowsy driving. The fact is that if you are sleepy, you will be prone to any kind of accident because you are less focused and alert. So, when you are tired, even the simplest activities such as chopping vegetables can result in injuring yourself.
Getting enough shuteye doesn’t mean you will always be happy, but as you have certainly noticed, lack of slumber will most likely make you fell groggy and cranky during the entire day. Failing to meet the sandman regularly also affects you emotional regulation. So, when you are tired or exhausted, you will more likely burst into tears, laugh uncontrollably, or yell at somebody.
Sleeping 7 to 9 hours a day can actually help you regulate your weight. On the contrary, sleep loss can result in weight gain. Why does this happen? The problem is part hormonal, part behavioral. Lack of sleep causes hormonal misbalance which may slow down your metabolism or cause you to feel hungrier than usual. The hormone leptin is responsible for this. Leptin is a hormone that signals your brain when you are full. When you don’t sleep as much as you should, levels of leptin drop, which may cause night craving for food or specifically for high-fat and high-calorie foods. When it comes to behavior, when you are tired, you are less likely to go for a jog or cook a healthy dinner after work.
When you are tired and exhausted, you will fell fuzzy during the entire day, and it will seem that your brain just can’t get out of its first gear. That is because sleep loss affects your cognition, attention, and even decision-making. If you have started doing strange things such as leaving your keys in the fridge and similar odd mistakes, you should definitely get more sleep.
As lack of sleep can affect our cognitive abilities, it can also affect our memory. Lack of shuteye can lead to forgetfulness, especially of recent events. Studies have shown that sleep loss makes hard for our brain to process and consolidate memories from the day. The fact is that without enough blissful slumber, your memories can’t be stored correctly, so they will eventually be completely lost. As this isn’t enough, some researchers claim that lack of sleep increases the chances of developing false memories.
Did you know that sleep can protect you from the common cold? In a recent study, scientists have monitored sleep habits of over 150 people for two weeks. After two weeks, they exposed them to a cold virus, and the results showed that people who got seven or more hours of sleep per night are three times less likely to get sick than people who sleep less than seven hours a day. Of course, this study is inconclusive because there are a lot of other factors that may have affected the immunity of the examinees. However, you can’t go wrong if you decide to sleep 8 hours every night.
Co-founder of Counting Sheep and Sleepaholic
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