Not too many people realize the power of sleep as it is perhaps one of the most underrated aspects of keeping healthy and feeling great. In today’s fast-paced society where people hardly get enough sleep and are losing touch with their body’s natural cycles, getting quality sleep is a way for your body to heal itself and regain some of that energy lost while living our busy lives.
It is common knowledge that humans sleep to recharge their bodies, brain, and organs. Sleep gives the brain time to organize data in its memory, repair damaged cells, tissue, and muscles, and give the cardiovascular system a break.
A lot of people suffer from sleeping problems with some cases even bordering on severe sleeping disorders. It has become commonplace for very few people to have a quality of sleep sufficient for excellent wellbeing. Research suggests that a person’s IQ can drop substantially if sleep-deprived and skipping a night’s sleep is equivalent to having a blood alcohol reading over the legal limit. Even just a little lack of sleep can have immediate consequences on our health.
For instance, think about the last time you didn’t get a good night’s sleep. How did you feel the next day? You were most likely irritable, tired, depressed, muzzy, and unable to think clearly. These and many more symptoms can be signs that you’re not getting enough quality sleep each night.
Although most everyone will agree that sleep is important, getting experts to agree on exactly what sleep does is a different matter. Even though there seems to be no consensus on all the different effects of sleep nor exactly what benefits we derive from it, however, there is a general consensus that quality sleep positively affects the following areas:
- Healthy Immune system and Reduced Risk for disease
When you don’t sleep, your immune system begins to fail. The bad bacteria flourish and you will see many symptoms such as fatigue, sickness, injury, etc. A healthy immune system means a good metabolism, healthy organs, and a body that will fight off disease.
- Healthy Hormone levels
Sleeping contributes to balancing prolactin, serotonin, dopamine, melatonin, and leptin. A balanced hormonal system is a balanced body and that only leads to an entire host of benefits.
- Muscle growth and reduced fats
Loss of sleep raises cortisol levels which cause more stress, and more fat storage among other things. When we get sufficient sleep, we get normal cortisol levels, leptin production, insulin sensitivity, and thyroid-stimulating hormone release, which is another way of saying Muscle growth and fat loss.
- Reduced Stress levels
Sleeping normalizes cortisol and insulin release during the day and night, allowing for steady moods and reduced risk for depression. It also balances out the dopamine and serotonin levels making you happy during the day.
- A Sound Mind
One of the best benefits of getting quality sleep is a sound mind. Whenever we lose sleep we tend to wake up with less energy, less focus, and in a worse state of mind. This makes it more difficult to accomplish our day’s tasks, but when we have enough sleep, we can accomplish more and more every day. You can work towards your dreams and eventually accomplish them energetically, positively, and effectively.
In summary, while there are so many other benefits of consistently enjoying quality sleep, I believe these five reasons are good enough to motivate you to always seek quality rest.
- Better immune system and lower risk of disease
- Healthy hormone levels
- Muscle growth and reduced fat
- Reduced stress levels and
- A sound mind
Aim to get at least 7-9 hours of sleep every night and your body will thank you for it.
If you’re going to want to be productive, have ample energy, and be mentally alert and emotionally balanced all day long, you’re going to need to get quality sleep.
There’s no worse way of finding out the importance of sleep than by not getting enough each night.
With Love and gratitude as always, Xo!
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Disclaimer: Please note that I am not your doctor while I am a health coach by profession. This article is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute medical advice nor does it establish any kind of medical relationship between you and me. I will not be held liable for any damage resulting from or related to your use of this information.