The Importance of Sleep

When we miss sleep in order to keep up with our 24/7 world, we pay a price with our ability to learn, our health and safety, and our quality of life

• It may seem obvious that sleep is beneficial. Even without fully grasping what sleep does for us, we know that going without sleep for too long makes us feel terrible, and that getting a good night's sleep can make us feel ready to take on the world. Scientists have gone to great lengths to fully understand sleep's benefits. In studies of humans and other animals, they have discovered that sleep plays a critical role in immune function, metabolism, memory, learning, and other vital functions. 

Health Benefits of Sleep

Getting enough sleep can help you:

• Reduce being sick.

• Stay at a healthy weight.

• Reduce stress and improve your mood.

• Improve your heart health and metabolism.

• Lower your risk of chronic conditions like:

  • Type 2 diabetes.

  • Heart disease.

  • High blood pressure.

  • Stroke.

• Lessen the risk of motor vehicle crashes and related injury or death.

• Improve your attention and memory to better perform daily activities.

What Happens to Your Brain When You Don't Get Enough Sleep?

Sleep deprivation affects your ability to remember, concentrate, and make good decisions. Your reaction time is also reduced. A sleep-deprived driver has the same poor response time as someone who is legally drunk.

Not getting enough sleep makes us more emotionally unstable. Lack of sleep can cause you to have very strong emotions, such as extreme sadness or anger.

What To Do:

Better sleep habits can help you get a good night's sleep. Habits that can improve your sleep include:

• Going to bed and getting up at the same time every day.

• Keeping your bedroom quiet, relaxing, and at a cool temperature.

• Turning off electronic devices at least 30 minutes before bedtime.

• Avoiding large meals and alcohol before bedtime.

• Avoiding caffeine in the afternoon or evening.

• Exercising regularly and maintaining a healthy diet.

Keeping a Sleep Diary

You may have want to keep a diary of your sleep habits to get a better understanding of your sleeping habits.

Your sleep diary should include when you:

• Go to bed.

• Wake up during the night.

• Wake up in the morning.

• Take naps.

• Exercise.

• Drink alcohol or caffeinated drinks.

• Take medications.

Sleep Quality

Quality sleep means you are getting uninterrupted and refreshing sleep. Getting quality sleep is not just about how many hours you sleep, but how well you sleep.

Signs of poor sleep quality include:

• Trouble falling asleep.

• Repeatedly waking up during the night.

• Feeling sleepy or tired even after getting enough sleep.

Why Is Sleep Important For Health?

The three pillars of health are nutrition, physical exercise, and sleep. All three of these are connected.

For example, if you don't sleep well, you may not eat well. People get food cravings when they haven't slept well, and they often crave a food with lots of carbohydrates (carbs) like a cookie. And when you are tired, the last thing you want to do is go to the gym.

People who are fully functioning pay attention to all three. They must all be working together for better health.

Here are some other health benefits of sleep:

• promotes growth

• helps heart health

• supports weight management

• helps combat germs and keep your immune system strong

• reduces risk of injury

• increases attention span

• boosts memory and learning