Every major health system and brain function in the human body is enhanced with the right amount of sleep. However, the reciprocal can be said, wherein sleep deprivation can cause impairment in bodily functions which we heavily rely on.
To better understand what sleep does to our brain and body, it is important to debunk myths and highlight the benefits of sleep.
Sleep Myths Debunked
One of the most proliferate sleep myths is that it can be claimed back. Unlike what most people believe, sleep deprivation, be it one night or constant, cannot be claimed back by recovering the hours in the next sleep cycle.
As a result, your body will carry the sleep debt you've incurred, with recovery only possible by up to half of your required sleep hours.
Sleep is singularity the most effective way for anyone to reset the health of their brain and body. Simply, sleep is nature's cure-all.
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What Does Sleep Deprivation Do to the Body?
Short sleep has been linked with an increase in risks of high blood pressure, stroke, heart attacks, and other cardiovascular diseases where even a single hour of sleep loss could be detrimental to your health, according to Science Focus.
A study published in the journal Open Heart in 2014, entitled "Daylight savings time and myocardial infarction," studies about 42,000 heart attack hospitalizations during the spring. Data gathered suggests that an hour of sleep loss results in a roughly 24$ increase in heart attacks over the next consecutive days.
Even the body's hormones take a turn for the worst when they are sleep-deprived. A study in the journal JAMA shows that healthy men sleeping for under 4 hours for 4 consecutive nights have the same testosterone levels as men 10 years older. Consequently, the same can be said for female reproductive hormones.
Lack of sleep has also been attributed to increased anxiety and higher depression rates. Studies show that insufficient sleep increases tendencies of suicidal thoughts.
How Much Sleep is the Right Amount of Sleep?
Time and time again, experts have emphasized that most adults should strive for at least 7 hours of sleep every night. This is based on mountains of studies and research and CDC warnings that seven to nine hours of sleep is necessary for the average adult to get the right amount of sleep.
However, although the number of hours of sleep we get is crucial, the quality of sleep is just as essential. Common signs of poor sleep quality are the unparalleled tiredness many of us experience even after getting good hours of sleep, repeated waking up during the middle of the night, and sleep disorder symptoms like snoring.
The Sleep Foundation advises that poor sleep quality can worsen a person's mood, impair focus, and increase the risk of Alzheimer's disease.
Good quality sleep is when you are able to sleep within the first 30 minutes you hop on the bed. You should also be able to sleep throughout the night without waking up even once throughout the night.
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