The Many Benefits of Sleep

There are many benefits of sleep that most of us fail to be aware of because we are just so busy.

Life is much easier to cope with when we feel good. Part of feeling good means getting a good night’s sleep each and every night. Sleep and health are linked. Researchers have even theorized that getting the proper amount of sleep plays a role in how long a person lives.

There are many benefits of sleep but here are a list of some of the ones that stand out the most.

Sleep helps to repair damage to the body
The human body can sustain damage in a number of ways throughout the run of any given day. Just think of such negatives as stress, pollutants, disease and infection, too much sun exposure, harsh chemicals, and so on. When a person sleeps, their body is at work producing extra protein molecules that work to repair cells.

Heart help
The cardiovascular system is constantly at work and therefore is vulnerable to many types of stressors. Getting the sleep you need helps to strengthen the heart and make it less vulnerable to stress and inflammation. High levels of inflammation can increase a person’s likelihood of suffering heart disease, a heart attack or a stroke. Sleeping the proper amount can also lower blood pressure and LDL cholesterol (which is the bad kind).

Stress alert
The benefits of sleep also extend to the stresses that you are under. If your shut-eye is lacking then an alert signal will be communicated to the brain. This leads to a spike in blood pressure. It will also cause stress hormones to be produced in higher quantities than usual. As you are probably well aware, too much stress can wear down the body, especially if it happens often. Adequate sleep works to counteract this.

Improved ability to focus and remember
You are more alert, can concentrate better and are able to remember practically everything better when your mind and body is well rested. Your brain will also be more able to process new information, experiences and knowledge that it receives.

Sleep and your weight
Here is one that may be news to you! If you weigh more than you like yet you eat well and exercise often your lack of adequate sleep may be to blame. When a person is deprived of sleep they tend to eat more, which can in turn affect their weight. One of sleep’s many benefits is that it regulates the hormones that control a person’s appetite. When you go without sleep the balance for these hormones is thrown off and this causes you to naturally feel hungrier. Most often the cravings a person will experience tend to be for foods that offer very little in nutritional value, such as foods that are high in fats, sugar, salt and very high in calories.

There are so many benefits to sleep that you owe it to yourself to learn what they are and then give sleep the priority in your life that it deserves!

Samantha