The Benefits of Sleep
Sleep is often taken for granted in these fast times. There’s just so much to accomplish within one day; if you can skip sleep, you would. But apart from being one of the most rewarding part of the day, sleep comes with so many benefits – you would not want to deprive yourself of it if you knew how much.
Immune system booster
A study in Germany found that their sample of volunteers who got a good night’s sleep reacted better to the after effects of the Hepatitis A vaccine. After four weeks of getting the vaccination, the good-sleepers group had almost twice the number of Hepatitis A antibodies in their system than the sleep-deprived group. In sleep, the body goes into repair mode such that introducing foreign substances like vaccines will spark the rapid creation of antibodies for those substances.
IQ booster
A Harvard Medical School study found that students who learned and practiced a new skill the night before had a better chance of correctly performing the skill the next day if they had a good night’s sleep. While you may learn a thing or two while staying up and studying, it is when you sleep that your mind processes what you have learned. This way, your learning sticks to your long term memory.
Best beauty care regimen
Our skin, blood, and brain cells regenerate during sleep. This is one of the benefits of sleep’s repair mode and is unbeaten by any of those expensive face creams and skin care products. In contrast, skin abnormalities and discoloration like the dark circles that appear around your eyes occur when you deprive yourself of sleep.
Hocus focus
When you deprive your body and your brain of repair time via sleep, you will most probably have a harder time focusing. You are more likely to make mistakes and become more irritable. Reaction time is likewise slower.
General well-being
With sleep, we behave better. We don’t go into extremes; we’re not as cranky and aggressive. Disorientation and paranoia are some of the side effects of lack of sleep.
Getting a good night’s sleep
- Make bedtime a routine. Try to sleep and wake up at the same times each day.
- The bed is for sleeping and not work or television.
- Keep off the sleep inhibitors like alcohol, caffeine, and cigarettes at least three hours before bedtime.
- Exercise stimulates the brain and the body. Do not exercise close to bedtime.
Source:
VHi Healthcare