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Effects On Your Body Lack Of Sleep
If you toss and turn and feel frustrated at not being able to fall asleep, you will have a tired and grumpy day. Losing the recommended night's sleep, which is between 7 and 9 hours, will leave you feeling groggy and grumpy.
The long-term effects of sleep loss are real, and you will surely begin to notice them: it depletes your mental capacities, affects your work productivity, and puts your physical and mental health at real risk.
Science has linked poor quality sleep to all manner of health problems, from weight gain to a weak immune system.
In the following article, we will tell you about the effects that sleep deprivation causes, mainly on the specific functions and systems of the body.
causes and consequences of sleep disorder
Simply put, lack of sleep is caused by a constant lack of sleep or loss of quality sleep. Sleeping less than 7 hours on a regular basis can have health consequences that affect the entire body. Although lack of sleep, it can also be caused by an underlying sleep disorder.
Sleep is as necessary as the air and food that the body needs to perform well. It is during sleep that the body heals itself, restores chemical balance, creates new neural connections, and retains memory.
If you don't get enough sleep, your body and brain systems will not function properly, radically reducing your quality of life. The studies have found that the risk of premature death increases when you sleep very little.source
Excessive sleepiness, daytime fatigue, irritability, and yawning are notable signs of sleep deprivation.
Stimulants like caffeine won't be enough to eliminate the body's heavy need for sleep. At worst, caffeine can make sleep deprivation worse, making it harder to sleep at night. This, in turn, can lead to a sleepless night cycle and create dependency on the day to make up for lost hours of sleep.
On the other hand, chronic sleep deprivation can affect the body's internal systems, causing more damage than that caused by a lack of conventional sleep.
Effects On The Body From Lack Of Sleep
1. Central nervous system
Quality sleep is necessary to keep the central nervous system, which is the highway through which the body sends information, in proper functioning. Lack of sleep or chronic insomnia can affect the delivery of information.
It is during sleep that neural connections are formed in the brain, which will help to remember the new information learned. Lack of sleep also drains your brain, preventing it from performing other tasks.
It will be more difficult to concentrate and learn new things. The signals your body sends can also be delayed and your coordination impaired, increasing the risk of accidents.
With lack of sleep, your mental abilities and your emotional state will be compromised, you may feel more impatient or prone to mood swings. You can also err in the decision-making process and in creativity.
If the lack of sleep goes further, you may start hallucinating, seeing or hearing things that are not there. Also, it can be triggered in people with bipolar disorder. Other psychological risks include:
Impulsive behavior
Anxiety
Depression
Paranoia
Suicidal thoughts
Added to this, there is a high risk of ending up experiencing micro-sleep in the daytime. Episodes, where you will fall asleep for a few seconds or minutes without realizing it, which can be dangerous if you drive.
2. Immune system
While you sleep, your immune system produces protective substances like cytokines that fight infection. These substances are used by the body to fight invaders such as bacteria and viruses.
Cytokines also help you sleep, giving your immune system the conditions to defend itself against disease.
On the contrary, if you don't get enough sleep, your immune system will be weakened, which will prevent it from defending itself against invaders. Also, the recovery time from an illness will be longer.
Lastly, long-term lack of sleep increases the risk of chronic diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease.
3. Cardiovascular system
Lack of sleep affects the processes that keep the heart and blood vessels healthy, including blood sugar, blood pressure, and levels of inflammation. It also plays a vital role in the body's ability to heal and repair blood vessels and the heart.
People who don't get enough sleep are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease. One analysis linked insomnia with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke.
4. Respiratory System
There is a very close relationship between sleep and the respiratory system. There is a nocturnal breathing disorder called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), which can interrupt your sleep and decrease quality.
As you wake up at night, it can cause poor sleep, leaving you more vulnerable to respiratory infections like the common cold and flu.
Lack of sleep can also make existing respiratory diseases worse, such as chronic lung disease.
5. Digestive system
Lack of sleep, along with not exercising and overeating, is another risk factor for being overweight and obese. Sleep affects levels of leptin and ghrelin, two hormones that control feelings of hunger and fullness.
The leptin tells your brain that you've eaten enough. Without good sleep, your brain reduces leptin and increases ghrelin, which is an appetite-stimulating hormone. The flow of these hormones could explain nighttime cravings or why someone may overeat at night.
Lack of sleep can also make you too tired to exercise. Over time and with little physical activity, you may gain weight because you are not burning enough calories.
Lack of sleep also causes your body to release higher levels of insulin after eating. Insulin controls the level of sugar in the blood. Higher levels of insulin promote fat storage and increase the risk of type 2 diabetes.
6. Endocrine system
The production of hormones depends on sleep. For testosterone production, you need at least three hours of continuous sleep, which is roughly the time of your first REM episode (which accounts for 40% of total sleep).
Waking up during the night can affect hormone production.
This disruption can also affect the production of growth hormone, especially in children and adolescents, which helps build muscle mass, repair cells, and tissues.
The pituitary gland continuously releases growth hormones, but sleep and exercise also stimulate the release of this hormone.
Treatment for Sleep Deprivation
What is the lack of sleep at night?
The simplest way to avoid sleep deprivation is to get more sleep.
Sometimes this is easier said than done, especially if you've been sleep deprived for several weeks. After this point, you may need the help of a doctor, who can diagnose and treat a possible sleep disorder.
Sleep disorders make quality sleep difficult at night. They also increase the risk of the above effects on the body from lack of sleep.
The following are the most common types of sleep disorders:
Sleep apnea
Restless leg syndrome
Narcolepsy
Movement disorders
Convulsions
To diagnose these conditions, the doctor may order a sleep study. There are also options to measure the quality of your sleep at home.
If you are diagnosed with a sleep disorder, you may be given medicine or a device to keep your airways open in the case of sleep apnea, to help fight symptoms and help you sleep better on a regular basis.
How to Prevent the Effects of Sleep Disorder or Lack of Sleep
The best way to prevent poor sleep is to make sure you get enough sleep. For most adults ages 18 to 64, 7 to 9 hours of sleep is ideal.
Other ways to normalize sleep with a healthy sleep schedule include:
*Avoid naps during the day.
*Refrain from caffeine afternoon.
*Go to bed at the same time each night.
*Waking up at the same time each morning.
*Stick to your bedtime on weekends and holidays.
*Do relaxing activities one hour before bedtime, such as reading, meditating, or bathing.
*Avoid heavy meals two hours before bedtime.
*Refrain from electronic devices just before bedtime.
*Exercise regularly, but not in the hours close to bedtime.
If your trouble sleeping at night continues, and you're struggling with daytime fatigue, talk to your doctor. He will be able to assess whether there are other conditions that are affecting your sleep schedule.source (1)
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