Just as a healthy diet and exercise are vital components for maintaining good health, sleep too is equally essential. Sleep is a natural means of body repair and helps one to stay healthy and mentally sound. Several studies have indicated that lack of sleep can result in various ailments such as depression, diabetes, heart diseases, stroke and how sleep can change your life.
A noble-winning genius that Einstein is, reportedly slept for 10 hours per pay. Doctors recommend at least 7 to 8 hours of peaceful sleep to remain healthy and function properly. Here is how sleep can change your life:
● Boosts Immunity – Research claims that individuals getting less than 7 hours of sleep per night are 3 times more likely to be susceptible to various illnesses over the ones who get 8 hours of sleep.
Because when the human brain is asleep, cytokines are released (a type of protein). Cytokines help in regulating immunity and act as a defence system to fight off infections, if any. Taking proper sleep boosts the immunity levels and wards off infections.
● Slows Down the Aging Process – Sleep deprivation results in the breaking down of tiny telomere caps that are gene protectors, speeding up the aging process.
While, on the contrary, getting enough sleep activates the telomerase enzymes. It helps in repairing the damage and reversing the aging process, making you look genetically youthful.
● Enhances Cognitive Ability – Lack of sleep results in declining cognitive ability. If the sleep deprivation is chronic, the brain performance and memory gets affected. Proper sleep leads to drastic improvement of intellectual and physical capacity on multiple levels.
● Happiness Dose – Proper sleep allows your brain to rest and acts as a mood stabilizer. Lack of sleep or insomnia can result in feelings of anxiety and depression. But taking appropriate sleep helps in keeping the mind fresh and happy.
● Weight Reduction – If you aim to reduce weight, focus on improving your sleep quality and time. A sleep-deprived brain releases more of ghrelin (an appetizing hormone) that induces appetite and increases cravings for junk food high in carbohydrates.
Additionally, inadequate sleep results in insulin impairment and reduced sugar metabolism that results in weight gain and puts you at the risk of diabetes.
Given the several benefits, it is so important to take regular doses of sleep. Ensuring a healthy sleep regimen can transform your life to a next level. Sleep also reduces cortisol levels, keeping you stress-free!