Can sleep really keep you healthy?
Getting enough sleep can help us lead a healthy lifestyle, and with the covid-19 pandemic affecting our quality of life, staying healthy should be a priority.
It is recommended that adults sleep at least seven hours a night, children aged 6-12 need 9-12 hours and children aged 13-18 need 8-10 hours.
Experts have concluded that lack of sleep can lead to the following health problems:
Diabetes
Insulin helps control blood sugar, and sleep deprivation can reduce insulin production.
Maintaining a healthy balance between insulin and glucose is the key to avoiding type 2 diabetes.
Adequate sleep, along with proper nutrition and exercise, may reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Stress and immunity
Lack of sleep increases stress hormones, which prevent good hormones from working properly and prevent the body from restoring its defenses against disease.
Getting enough sleep improves our body's ability to fight off viruses, allowing us to destroy them faster.
Sleep deprivation also increases white blood cells, which in turn increase our inflammation and may slow our recovery from disease.
Sleep helps clear out the brain toxins that are produced when we are awake.
Cardiovascular disease
Because we don't get enough sleep, we tend to increase our "bad" cholesterol, which comes in the form of LDL.
These are "arterial blockages" that block the smooth flow of blood.
Not all of the studies are conclusive, but interfering with sleep can reduce our ability to make "good" cholesterol, a protective agent for arteries.
Blood pressure drops during sleep, so limited sleep can lead to long periods of high blood pressure. This can lead to high blood pressure and more serious heart problems.
Growing scientific research suggests that children who don't get enough sleep have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Sleep can help reduce behavioral problems and improve mental health.
In a word, in addition to good nutrition and enough exercise, we should all work hard to improve our sleeping habits so that we can keep healthy both physically and mentally.
It is recommended that adults sleep at least seven hours a night, children aged 6-12 need 9-12 hours and children aged 13-18 need 8-10 hours.
Experts have concluded that lack of sleep can lead to the following health problems:
Diabetes
Insulin helps control blood sugar, and sleep deprivation can reduce insulin production.
Maintaining a healthy balance between insulin and glucose is the key to avoiding type 2 diabetes.
Adequate sleep, along with proper nutrition and exercise, may reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Stress and immunity
Lack of sleep increases stress hormones, which prevent good hormones from working properly and prevent the body from restoring its defenses against disease.
Getting enough sleep improves our body's ability to fight off viruses, allowing us to destroy them faster.
Sleep deprivation also increases white blood cells, which in turn increase our inflammation and may slow our recovery from disease.
Sleep helps clear out the brain toxins that are produced when we are awake.
Cardiovascular disease
Because we don't get enough sleep, we tend to increase our "bad" cholesterol, which comes in the form of LDL.
These are "arterial blockages" that block the smooth flow of blood.
Not all of the studies are conclusive, but interfering with sleep can reduce our ability to make "good" cholesterol, a protective agent for arteries.
Blood pressure drops during sleep, so limited sleep can lead to long periods of high blood pressure. This can lead to high blood pressure and more serious heart problems.
Growing scientific research suggests that children who don't get enough sleep have a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Sleep can help reduce behavioral problems and improve mental health.
In a word, in addition to good nutrition and enough exercise, we should all work hard to improve our sleeping habits so that we can keep healthy both physically and mentally.
