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Zzz...Why you should always put sleep first!

3 min read

We all know that not getting enough sleep makes us tired and angry, but there are more advantages to getting enough sleep than just having more energy.

Sleep is a major predictor of health and well-being, just like nutrition and physical activity. Sleep is essential for the health and development of an infant, child, or adolescent. Sleep deprivation and untreated sleep problems harm family health and interpersonal connections. Fatigue and sleepiness can limit productivity and raise the risk of mishaps like medical blunders and automobile or industrial accidents.

A sufficient amount of sleep is required to:

Defend yourself from illness
To avoid diabetes, promote sugar metabolism.
Do well in school.
Work efficiently while remaining safe.

Sleep time and length have an impact on a variety of endocrine, metabolic, and neurological activities that are important for maintaining one's health. Sleep disorders and chronic shortness of sleep, if left untreated, are linked to an increased risk of:

Coronary artery disease
Blood pressure that is too high
Obesity
All-cause mortality in diabetics

It's now clear that a solid night's sleep is essential for long and healthy life.

How much sleep do we need?

To function properly, most of us require roughly 7-8 hours of good-quality sleep per night — but some of us require more, while others require less. What matters is that you figure out how much sleep you require and then attempt to meet that requirement.

As a general rule, if you wake up tired and spend the rest of the day wishing for a nap, you're probably not getting enough sleep.

Poor sleep can be caused by a range of circumstances, including medical illnesses such as sleep apnea. However, in the majority of cases, it is linked to poor sleeping habits.

How might getting a good night's sleep to benefit your health?

1. Sleep improves your immune system

If you tend to catch every cold and virus going around, it's possible that your bedtime is to blame. Sleep deprivation can cause your immune system to malfunction, making you less able to fight off viruses.

2. Sleep improves mental health

Given how a single sleepless night may leave you angry and grumpy the next day, it's no surprise that persistent sleep debt in adults can lead to long-term mood disorders such as clinical depression and generalised anxiety disorder.

When people suffering from anxiety or depression were polled about their sleeping habits, it was discovered that the majority of them slept for less than 6 hours per night.

3. Sleep helps to keep diabetes at bay

According to studies, persons who sleep less than 6 hours every night have a higher risk of acquiring diabetes.

It appears that not getting enough deep sleep might cause type 2 diabetes by altering how the body processes glucose, which it utilises for energy.

4. Sleep can slim you

If you sleep less, you may gain weight! According to studies, those who sleep fewer than 7 hours a day gain more weight and are more likely to become obese than those who sleep 7 hours.

It's thought to be because sleep-deprived persons have lower amounts of leptin (the hormone that makes you feel full) and higher levels of ghrelin (the hormone that makes you hungry) (the hunger-stimulating hormone).

5. Sleep boosts sex desire

According to a study, men and women who don't get enough good sleep lose their libido (sex drive) and have less desire for sex.

Men with sleep apnoea, a condition in which breathing difficulties cause sleep interruptions, have reduced testosterone levels, which can affect libido.

6. Sleep wards off heart disease

Long-term sleep deprivation has been related to an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, and levels of specific chemicals connected to inflammation, all of which may place additional strain on your heart.

7. Sleep boosts fertility

One of the impacts of sleep deprivation has been suggested to be difficulty conceiving a child in both men and women. Regular sleep interruptions appear to promote infertility by lowering reproductive hormone release.

How can you make up for missing sleep?

If you're sleep-deprived, the only way to make up for it is to get more sleep. Unfortunately, it is not possible to make it up in one night. Recovery could take several weeks if you've experienced months of poor sleep. Make time for adequate sleep while planning your day, week, or month to maintain strong health.

Coronasomnia - How is the pandemic wrecking our sleep?

4 min read

COVID-19 has provided us with numerous reasons to be concerned. Here's another example: More people than ever are suffering from severe sleep deprivation as a result of the pandemic and stress. It's known as "coronasomnia." It's very real and very common.

A recent study conducted revealed "very high rates of clinically significant insomnia” along with more acute stress, anxiety, and depression during the pandemic. No one is surprised by this. As who hasn't had a few sleepless nights recently? Or a lot of sleepless nights? And who hasn't felt stressed by jumbled lives and health restrictions that seem to have no end in sight?

Even before the pandemic, medical experts were already concerned about rising rates of insomnia and its consequences on physical and emotional health. With COVID-19 stress, significant changes in routines, and decreased activity for many people, medical experts believe the coronavirus has caused the second pandemic of insomnia.

Coronasomnia is exacerbated by disrupted routines

As if COVID fatigue and anxiety weren't enough, there's another cause of coronasomnia: Our normal routines have been shattered. On the one hand, our lives have become overly routine. We can hardly leave the house. We don't go to movies, restaurants, bars and pubs, or any of the other places where we could meet new people. As humans, we require stimulation. We require some variety in our activities. When our lives become so routine, a lack of stimulation and activities contributes to poor sleep.

On the other hand, many people who work from home have strayed from their normal daily routines, which has an impact on their sleep. We're supposed to be awake during the day and asleep at night, but many people work and sleep at odd hours after the pandemic. Their circadian rhythms are thrown off. Every cell in your body is regulated by the body's "internal clock". They have an impact on your eating, digestion, immune response, and sleep. When the master clock is disrupted, everything else starts to fail.

Coronasomnia is a series of vicious circles

Insomnia is self-perpetuating. The more you can't sleep, the more you worry about it, and the less sleep you get. In fact, COVID-19-related insomnia is formed in an interconnected vicious circle:

Many of the things we do to combat insomnia, such as taking a nap during the day or drinking an extra glass of wine, actually worsen our sleep problems and disrupt our routines.
COVID-19 has worn us all out. When you add exhaustion from lack of sleep, every new annoyance, no matter how minor, causes frustration and anxiety – and further disruption to sleep.
Sleep deprivation can lead to weight gain, which can cause issues such as reflux, which keeps you awake.
Sleep deprivation has a variety of health consequences, ranging from depression to high blood pressure to an increased chance of heart attack or stroke. These factors can make us more prone to COVID-19, which causes increased anxiety and insomnia.

Follow these tips for a more restful night

There are several things that individuals can accomplish on their own. It all starts with adopting actions to combat COVID fatigue's stress. Here are some sleep tips:

Maintain a regular daily schedule: If you're working from home, keep the same schedule you would if you were going to work. Don't go to bed early or stay up late. Get up when that alarm goes off, no matter how unpleasant it is. Also, just as you would at the office, take a break during the day. Take a break for lunch, go for a stroll, or simply get outside.
Create and stick to a bedtime routine: At the end of the day, slow down. About a half-hour before bedtime, start dimming the lights. The production of natural melatonin is inhibited by bright lights (a hormone that is part of our natural sleep cycle and helps us sleep).
Avoid using devices in bed: Blue light from phones, tablets, and computers tells our bodies to stay awake and stop producing melatonin. It's difficult, but please turn off your electronics. Reading a book is preferable to watching TV.
Do not use your bedroom, particularly your bed, as an office: You want to train your brain that here is where you rest. You don't want it to say, 'This is your workplace.'
Get some exercise during the day: It helps to relieve stress and maintain our bodies natural rhythms. It's ideal to do the exercise a few hours before bedtime to allow your body to cool down and relax.
Get some sunlight: It aids in the maintenance of our circadian rhythms, allowing us to manufacture melatonin at night rather than during the day.
If you can't sleep and wake up in the middle of the night, get out of bed: While a change of environment can help you reset, keep the lights low and avoid doing anything that would invigorate you. Get up and leave the bedroom if you can't sleep for more than a half-hour. In the dull light, do something easy and monotonous.
Limit your intake of alcohol and caffeine, as both disrupt your sleep patterns: While alcohol can help you fall asleep, it does not guarantee that you will stay asleep or sleep well. "Not all sleep is created equal". We want to get the right amount of sleep.
Sleep medicine should be used with caution: over-the-counter sleep aids such as some flu medication can cause restless sleep or drowsiness in the morning, and prescription drugs can lead to emotional dependency. Some over-the-counter supplements can help to relieve sleep disturbance problems.

Too often, people do not consider insomnia to be a medical issue, despite the fact that it is making them miserable. It is frequently overlooked, despite the fact that a lack of adequate sleep might result in increased health risks. Chronic sleep deprivation can weaken your body's defences and make you more susceptible to illness, especially in the midst of the current pandemic.