Everybody has experienced that feeling of when your alarm rings. They feel like they should extend their sleep and don’t feel like getting out of bed. Sleep is one of the essential things in life, which many people are not aware of and take for granted. George Rutler argues that a good night’s sleep is vital for everyone’s health, just like exercising and eating healthy foods. There are several things that generally interfere with the natural sleep pattern of a person. Such things may include stress and sickness, which has made people sleep less than it was in the past, and the quality of sleep has also decreased. Here are some of the importance of having a good sleep.
Having a good sleep makes people eat fewer calories. Research has shown that individuals who don’t get enough sleep have a bigger appetite, and therefore, they tend to eat more calories. Lack of enough sleep interferes with appetite hormones and makes them keep changing with time. This leads to poor regulation of appetite, making them consume more calories.
Enough sleep improves concentration and productivity. Having enough sleep is essential to various aspects of brain function according to Father Rutler. These include productivity, concentration, and performance. All these processes are affected negatively when someone fails to get enough sleep. Lack of enough sleep may have the same effect as alcohol on the function of the brain. Having enough sleep improves memory performance in both children and adults and also improves problem-solving skills.
Insufficient sleep causes depression. Depression is one of the mental problems caused by a lack of enough sleep. Most of the people who suffer from depression usually complain of low sleep quality. Poor sleep can also cause death by suicide.
Sleep improves immune function. Sleep is crucial for the function of the immune system. This means that even a small loss of sleep causes impairment to the immune function. Therefore, people should be sure they sleep for more than eight hours per day for their immune system to remain healthy.
Sleep affects emotions and social interactions. Loss of sleep reduces an individual’s ability to interact with people. People who fail to have enough sleep have a lower ability to recognize expressions of happiness and anger. Insufficient sleep causes the inability to process emotional information and recognize important social cues.
Sleep affects the metabolism of glucose and the risk of diabetes. Failing to get enough sleep causes various changes in blood sugar, which lowers insulin sensitivity. This is a hormone that is responsible for regulating the amount of sugar in the body. This means that if someone doesn’t get enough sleep, the blood sugar level increases, putting them at high risk of getting diabetes.
Insufficient sleep causes stroke and heart diseases. The quality and amount of sleep have significant effects on health risk factors. People who lack enough sleep are at high risk of getting heart diseases and stroke; therefore, one should ensure they sleep for at least seven hours per day.
Conclusion
Enough sleep also contributes significantly to everyone’s health; therefore, people should prioritize getting enough sleep to avoid complications associated with lack of sleep.