6 Unexpected Ways Lack of Sleep Affects Your Body-And What to Do About It. When you don’t get enough sleep, and let’s face it, how many of us actually do?, one of the first effects you’ll notice is that you feel tired due to your body conserving energy. However, lack of sleep, not just that occasional night when you decide to stay up later to watch television, can have additional negative effects on the body, that you might not have previously realised. Read on to discover the impact lack of sleep can have on you plus some tips on how to get more Zzz’s! !
In many instances getting less sleep is seen as simply a part of life. Between work, kids and the temptation of social media it is very easy to sacrifice sleep for these things. However, recent research has shown that your overall health, both physically and mentally, actually relies on you receiving the appropriate amount of sleep. Therefore, it is important that you prioritise sleep as even those who don’t get sufficient amounts can experience adverse effects from it, such as those detailed below!
Before your next sleep-deprived working day, take a look at some of the following effects!
Your Physical and Emotional Brain is…Just Not OK
When you do not get enough sleep you begin to lose 100IQ and feel more emotional – and that effects everything. How to fight when you are tired
The effects of lack of sleep also extend towards your overall cognitive function. 1: You’re Basically Less Smart
Lack of sleep can impair your cognitive performance including concentration, focus, attention span and decision making capabilities. According to a report released by The American Academy of Sleep Medicine: “Lack of sleep impairs an individual’s capacity for concentration, focus, and decision-making resulting in poor work performance, school performance, occupational injuries and motor vehicle accidents. Impairment of attention span, decreased arousal/alertness, reduced ability to pay attention, sleep onset latency (SOL), reduced responsivity, difficulty to integrate and process information are some effects.”
If you find that you are forgetting things far more readily than before it could be that lack of sleep is impacting your cognitive performance. This is why all-nighters fail to replace sufficient sleep as your body requires it to function correctly, and it is why being tired can actually cause errors in judgement that could lead to costly mistakes. 2: Your Mood Plummet, and you’ll get moody
It is only natural to feel a little more irritated when you haven’t had sufficient sleep, but with sleep deprivation you can find that even seemingly minor issues can bother you greatly.
A 2013 study carried out by the Stanford University School of Medicine and UC Berkeley explored how sleep deprivation impacted our emotional processing and revealed the following: “… Emotion recognition and regulation during stress are highly dependent on adequate sleep … people are less sensitive to negative emotions such as happiness and joy, and more reactive to stressors as perceived in others…when they aresleep-deprived, they exhibit greater insensitivity to negative stimuli, including more pronounced fear conditioning, reduced perception of threats, and higher tolerance of suffering.”
It is therefore safe to assume that all individuals are more resilient when they receive sufficient restful sleep, and less so when they do not, if it effects emotions and that effects decision making, then our mood is definitely going to take a hike! Let’s discuss this with a professional today. 3. Your Immune system takes the Hit
When you sleep your body prepares itself for the day ahead, not only physically but also by preparing the immune system. Scientists who have studied the effects of short sleeping patterns in both adults and children have concluded that: “Short sleeping time … it resulted in increased infection, increase in severity of diseases…”
When you lack sleep your body begins to produce antibodies needed to fight infections such as colds and flu, but they are delayed, created differently and are not as effective as those produced when you have received sufficient rest.
Your immune defenses are weakened, leaving you open for infection and illness. Don’t skimp on rest 4: You become more of risk of serious medical conditions
Heart attacks, high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes are all serious medical conditions that can, unfortunately, arise as a result of chronic lack of sleep. Lack of sleep has already shown to negatively effect those who are vulnerable to high blood pressure and other cardiovascular diseases for example.
Medical professionals explain that: “Insufficient sleep increases inflammation, impairs insulin resistance, makes blood pressure higher and reduces glucose tolerance – all contributing factors to the increasing epidemics of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. Furthermore, sleep deprivation compromises immune function which increases the possibility of infection and malignancy of the immune-responsive organs,” it makes perfect sense why the amount of time you are awake for correlate with a higher chance of physical complications. 5: You’re Much Hunger
When we are sleep deprived our appetites increase greatly when in the body satiety signals are sent out to indicate that we need more food, ghrelin will rise while leptin decreases. Eating healthy is difficult and you may find that you crave unhealthy foods. Your body needs a wake up call and an alert to re-fill itself from the lack of shut-eye you have been getting resulting in more frequent hunger signals for those less than filling sweet cravings you simply cannot satisfy.
Ghrelin is the main satiety triggered appetites hungerhormone which will keep you feeling hungry,” say our doctors and specialists, “While at the same time it suppresses leptin-the satiety hormon- which will prevent you from realizing that you may have had your fill of food”.
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Now you have found solutions 6: You Gain Weight
It is no surprise that the more time you spend sitting down the less calories you burn per day, but when it comes to weight gain and lack of sleep there is more to it.
People’s bodies can start to change as a consequence of prolonged lack of sleep not only when it comes to their appetite but also when it comes to their resting state in addition to the calories they burn when they are asleep at an increased sleep loss can lead to more than double or tripled the increased risk of developing heart disease.
It is an indication that over time your body can be negatively impacted by sleep deprivation and over the long term it can be a factor in making it more challenging to lose weight since it can affect your appetite hormones, lower your metabolism and cause tiredness when it comes to snacking! However if the body is over worked it would need food to boost its energy levels which results to gaining weight over time. To find solutions that may help you with that, feel free to connect to healthcare professionals who’ll provide guidance and tips.
Let’s talk about what’s more about what could you take on right now to promote healthier lifestyle.
Work life balance is no longer important ,I work over eight hours on my work every day, it’s not that hard but i have sleep 6 hours every day for weeks, sleep that is enough to make me feel more or less ok, but sometimes there is days that, even those 6 hours. 7. It might affect your metabolism and blood sugar regulation The relationship between sleep and the body’s metabolism is complex. The body needs sleep in order to maintain proper metabolic function.
Research shows that chronic lack of sleep can interfere with people’s ability to regulate their blood sugar and insulin sensitivity. In other words, not getting enough sleep on a regular basis can impair your body’s ability to deal with energy and glucose properly.
This is an important consideration, since a healthy metabolism plays a crucial role in overall health. In your efforts to improve your wellbeing, instead of thinking of sleep as something totally separate from diet and exercise, think of it as one aspect of a healthy lifestyle. Eating healthy foods and getting regular physical activity are obviously important, but so is getting enough sleep. 8. Your body has less time to repair and recover Think of sleep as your body’s way of getting a late-night workout. Your muscles and other tissues need time to rebuild themselves, so make sure you give your body the chance to recover and repair. This is especially important if you engage in regular physical activity, if your job puts a lot of strain on your muscles or if you experience high levels of everyday stress.
Lack of sleep can leave you with: Increased muscle soreness Low energy Poor physical performance Slowed recovery Generalised fatigue Low motivation when it comes to physical activity This can create a self-perpetuating cycle: Poor sleep -> low energy -> less physical activity -> higher stress levels -> even poorer sleep Being able to get sufficient sleep can help you feel better when it comes to everyday physical activity as well as sports-related workouts. Remember that recovery is part of fitness – rest is not the opposite of training, it is an important aspect of it. 9. Your skin might begin to show signs of insufficient sleep Your skin can tell people a lot about how you’re feeling.
After just a few nights of insufficient sleep, your skin can start to look dull and puffy, with dark circles under your eyes becoming more prominent.
Your skin type, your level of stress, your overall health and your circulation can all play a part in how your skin looks and feels. Now this doesn’t mean that one sleepless night will leave you with permanently damaged skin, but chronic lack of sleep can contribute to stress levels. If you invest in expensive skincare products but only get about four hours of good sleep every night, it’s important to remember that your health and beauty routine should include skincare and sufficient amounts of rest. A balanced diet, adequate fluids, stress management, sun protection and proper sleep all contribute to healthy-looking skin.
10. Sleep can affect female hormones Sleep plays an important role for females, since it is controlled by your body’s circadian rhythm (circadian = daily, rhythm = pattern or sequence). Your natural sleep-wake cycle has an effect on a number of different hormones. Your circadian rhythm controls when you feel wide awake and when you feel tired, but it also has an effect on your stress, metabolism and reproduction hormones. Low levels of sleep and high levels of stress can have an impact on your general wellbeing and can also cause fluctuations in female hormones and irregularities in your menstrual cycle.
Female hormones can be very difficult to assess, since it can be challenging to separate menstrual-related discomfort from the effects of stress. Symptoms such as irregular periods, fatigue, low mood and other hormonal-related issues can have many different causes, and if you notice these issues occurring frequently it might be a good idea to consult a medical professional and assess if these symptoms are related to your sleep patterns or not. How Will I Feel After Only One Night of Poor Sleep?
You will likely feel sleepy and this can lead to brain fog and also irritability.
Concentration and physical energy levels might drop and you will feel more hungry. You may also suffer from slower reaction times and low levels of motivation to engage in physical activity, which will further decrease your physical energy levels. Remember that one night of poor, or even no, sleep will not cause permanent health damage, since your body is well adapted to dealing with temporary stresses. The real problem occurs when you make poor sleep a permanent feature of your life. If you always think that you will “catch up” on sleep later on, you should seriously reconsider your relationship with sleep. How Will I Feel After Many Nights of Poor Sleep? In order to provide your body with the best defence against physical and mental illnesses you need your cardiovascular system to function as efficiently as possible as well as good metabolism, healthy weight, a strong immune system and good mental and emotional wellbeing.
Chronic lack of sleep, even if it only occurs on rare occasions or after long periods of poor sleep, can increase the risks for a number of diseases and also decrease your general health status. How Much Sleep Does a Person Actually Need? Most people need between 7-9 hours of good sleep per night, but this can vary significantly from person to person. Your personal sleep requirement is determined by your body, so pay attention to how you feel. Ask yourself the following questions: Do I feel refreshed and energised after I wake up?
Am I generally tired during the day? Do I feel the need to have coffee or other sources of caffeine throughout the day in order to feel more alert? Do I feel excessively tired after only sitting for a short while? Do I have trouble focusing throughout the day? Do I constantly need to “recover” lost sleep during the weekend or on days off? These are all signs that you do not get sufficient amounts of sleep and it might be a good idea to reassess your current situation.
Ten Simple Suggestions to Help You Get More Quality Sleep If you notice that you do not get sufficient amounts of sleep it does not mean that you have to change your entire lifestyle all at once. Make a few small changes in your efforts to get more good sleep!
Set a Consistent Sleep Schedule Make sure to go to bed and wake up at roughly the same time every day and night, if possible. Having a consistent sleep schedule will help your body maintain its natural sleep pattern. Create a Relaxation Ritual Before Going to Sleep Make sure to set aside 30-60 minutes before bed to unwind and relax. Do something you enjoy such as reading, listening to music or taking a warm bath. Avoid Screens an Hour before Going to Sleep Smartphones, tablets and similar screens can stimulate your brain and make it harder to fall asleep. Power down screens an hour before bedtime and make the most of your relaxation ritual. Create a Sleep-Friendly Bedroom Environment Make sure that your bedroom is conducive to sleep by keeping it dark, quiet and cool. Limit Your Caffeine Intake Caffeine is an amazing energy booster, but it can severely impact your sleep since it stays active in your system for several hours after consumption. You might want to limit your caffeine intake, especially later in the day. Get Some Regular Exercise Exercise is healthy for your body and mind and it can also make you tired,