Sleep is such an important part of our routines, yet so many people take it for granted. This is not something that is helpful especially in today’s world where most of us are increasingly busy with our jobs or taking care of families.
How exactly is this lack of sleep affecting us? Studies show that many people are actually using their free time, such as weekends, to catch up on sleep that they otherwise lost out on during the week. This is not healthy and something which people need to realize as soon as possible in order to fix it.
In this article, we look at 5 major problems a lack of sleep brings, and how you can try to improve them for the future.
You Become Sick
Without enough sleep, your body is not able to fight off illnesses. This is because when we sleep our body starts to repair naturally, and creates and develops new cells. When we don’t get enough repair during the night, naturally our immune system weakens, and before you know it you will be feeling extremely under the weather.
Your Thinking Becomes Clouded
Missing sleep will start to make you have cognition problems. In a recent study from the Experimental Brain Research, 18 men were given tasks to complete. One task was completed by those who had a full night’s sleep while the other task was completed after skipping a night’s sleep. Some of the brain’s functions such as memory, reasoning, decision making and problem-solving skills actually worsened along with alertness and reaction time. This, therefore, proved that sleep badly affects your ability to think straight and make rational decisions.
Your Memory Suffers
Along with the lack of sleep affecting our thinking, it also affects our memory. More recent research shows that lack of sleep greatly impacts our learning and what we can remember as we learn. Sleep is therefore critical to this whole process as it helps us to retain what we learn in our brains. A lack of sleep will certainly make this worse, and therefore we won’t remember as much as we’d like to.
You Gain Weight
When you don’t sleep enough, you are much more likely to gain weight. Why? this is because when we don’t sleep, our hunger seems to be increased when in actual fact it is tiredness and we eat to fix it rather than sleeping. A recent study examined relationships between sleep and weight in 21,469 adults aged 20 and over. The findings were that people who slept less than 5 hours per night over the course of 3 years were definitely more likely to gain weight than those who slept 7-8 hours.
Your Libido Decreases
Another area where a lack of sleep once again interferes is with your libido. Yes, that’s correct, when you are overtired, you are less likely to want to have sex. This is due to the reduced sex hormone levels through lack of sleep. If you are sleep deprived, it’s likely when you do eventually hit the pillow you will not have enough energy and this could cause issues especially in relationships.
So, What Is the Solution?
The solution to all of these problems is to get 7-8 hours every night. This can be done by simply going to bed an hour or two earlier than usual, and really try to get into a routine. A comfy bed can also make all the difference, so make sure you have a quality mattress that is sleep promoting – your body will thank you for it.
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