We’ve all been there. Your alarm goes off after a sleepless night and you drag yourself out of bed like a bear with a sore head. A bad night’s sleep can leave you feeling tired, irritable and unable to concentrate. You crave a pick-me-up in the form of sugar or caffeine, and long for the moment you can crawl back under your duvet.
On the other hand, nine hours of sleeping like a log can see you springing out of bed feeling bright-eyed, bushy-tailed and ready to take on anything the day might throw at you. But when you’ve got a lot on your mind, getting a good night’s sleep can be easier said than done.
Just like regular exercise and a healthy diet, getting enough good sleep is an essential part of looking after your health. Here I’ll take a look at some of the health benefits of sleep and why it’s important to make sleep a priority.
* Improve your attention and concentrationIt’s no surprise that getting a good night’s sleep can help to keep your energy levels up. But plenty of rest can also help to keep your mind from wandering and maintain your attention throughout the day.
Not sleeping properly can mean that both your body and brain don’t function properly the next day. It could impair your attention span, concentration, strategic thinking, risk assessment and reaction times. This is even more important if you have a big decision to make, are driving, or are operating heavy machinery. So getting plenty of sleep can help you to stay sharp and focused all day long.
* Learn and make memoriesNot only does sleep allow your body the time it needs to rest, repair and rebuild, but it does the same for your mind too. As you sleep, your brain begins to organise and process all the information you’ve taken on during the day. It converts your short-term memories into long-term memories. This helps you to learn and means that when you wake up, you can often see things more clearly.
* Help you maintain a healthy weightNot getting enough sleep can make it more difficult to control your appetite and might cause you to gain weight. If you’re not sleeping properly, your body will need more energy because it’s awake for longer. Some research has even suggested that being sleep-deprived changes the level of hormones that signal hunger and fullness in your body. This can make you more likely to choose unhealthy foods (like those high in sugar), and to overeat, particularly later in the day. So sleep plays a key role in regulating how your body uses food for energy and getting enough sleep could help to control your weight.
* Keep your heart healthyA lack of sleep can increase your risk of developing high blood pressure, diabetes and coronary heart disease. Waking up too often is thought to stimulate your sympathetic nervous system – the system responsible for your body’s ‘fight-or-flight’ response. The ‘fight-or-flight’ response is how your body physically reacts when it senses danger. Your sympathetic nervous system also activates your cardiovascular system and increases your blood pressure to prepare you for waking up. But if you’re being kept awake too often, your body can’t compensate for this rise in blood pressure and your level may remain higher than expected. Having high blood pressure is also a major risk factor for stroke and coronary heart disease.
* Keep your immune system strongGetting a good night’s sleep can help to keep your immune system fighting fit and keep germs at bay. Sleep gives your body the time it needs to rest and repair, which is one of the reasons you feel tired and want to sleep more when you’re unwell. Sleep supports the proteins and cells of your immune system to detect and destroy any foreign invaders your body might come into contact with, like the common cold. It also helps these cells to remember these invaders, so if you come across the same bugs and germs again, you’re prepared to fight them off. So a good night’s sleep helps to strengthen your body’s immune response, and it’s essential to allow yourself time to rest and recover when you’re not feeling well.