If you remember back in school, it took so much effort to wake up in the morning, and now, as an adult, it takes so much effort to hit the sack. At one point in life, sleep becomes the most expensive accessory that sometimes cannot even be bought at a price. The fast-paced life seldom gives you time to stop and rest. But sleep is as important for health as diet and exercise. It improves your brain functioning, mental well-being and overall health. Now the most important question is how much sleep is good for your health? Knowing these is imperative whether the quality of sleep is adequate, and whether your sleep timings are consistent. This gains even more importance for people with erratic work schedules doing night shifts or late-night duties. If you are one of them who lately experiencing sleepless nights and is completely clueless about what to do then this article is for you.
Why is it Important to Have a Good Night’s Sleep?
Something you have taken so easily for granted in your childhood slowly vanishes with age and causes inevitable mental and physical damage, some of which you are not even aware of. It is time you consciously hit the brake, breathe and stop to think about the lifestyle changes you need to have to “sleep like a child”. It is hard to fathom what sound sleep is if you are unaware of the stages and benefits of sleep.
The many benefits of sleep include:
Improved Memory and Performance
Researchers have proved time and again that sleep has direct links to several brain functions. Memory processing and formation are disrupted if sleep is inconsistent. Focus, judgement and decision-making ability are enhanced at work or school by sound sleep. As sleep impacts stress hormones, it may also affect behavioural patterns. Especially with children, irregular sleep patterns affect their behavioural and academic performances significantly.
Lowers Risk of Weight Gain
It is suggested that sleep deprivation causes increased release of hunger hormones, salt retention and inflammatory conditions. Hence, people who sleep less than the standard seven hours regularly have a higher chance of developing obesity. Maintaining a healthy sleep duration consistently can prevent obesity and help in weight management.
Lowers Cardiovascular Disease Risk
One of the major causes of heart disease is increased blood pressure. A consistent good sleep routine helps regulate blood pressure, prevents sleep-related conditions like sleep apnea, and promotes overall heart health in the long run.
Better Mental Health
It has been seen that insomnia is significantly associated with depression. Sleeplessness causes behavioural or cognitive changes that may lead to altered mental condition. Sleep disturbances may also lead to emotional instability, altering neural processes and causing symptoms of depression.
Improves Immunity
Your body cells repair, regenerate and recover during restful sleep. It helps to strengthen the immune system in the process. You must have noticed that you feel better faster if you rest during ailments like viral infection, flu or stomach problems. It is because your body gets time to relax and fight better after deep sleep.
Enhances Social and Emotional Intelligence
The importance of sleep encompasses your physical health factors. People who get quality of sleep tend to do well in social interactions and maintaining relationships as they feel more under control of their emotions and are very positive.
Why is Sleep Important?
Did you know that there are disorders related to sleep? Snoring, which was considered a non-serious issue and was even joked about, is now related to some major sleep disorders like narcolepsy, insomnia, sleep apnea, etc. The major categories of sleep disorders include:
- Insomnia is when you have difficulty falling asleep and staying asleep for the normal hours.
- Restless Leg Syndrome is a condition that involves an irresistible urge to move legs, mostly in the evenings.
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea is another disorder that happens when there is an intermittent blockage of air supply while sleeping.
- Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder that causes overwhelming daytime drowsiness.
- Jet lag, though sounds like a common condition, but can cause severe disruption if multiple zones are covered in a short time.
- Those who suffer from Hypersomnolence disorder always feel groggy or sleepy even after 7 hours of sleep. They may take multiple unintentional naps during the day and face difficulty keeping awake after abruptly waking up.
Hence, the importance of sleep for health cannot be discounted. If you feel that you suffer from symptoms of any of these above disorders, you should consult your physician without delay to avoid any future severity.
How Much Sleep is Good for Health?
It is recommended that adults should sleep between 7 to 9 hours at night. The recommended hours of sleep vary with age. For babies or toddlers, it can extend from 14 to 16 hours at night. This reduces with age. Children from 6 to 12 years of age should sleep for 9 to 12 hours, and teens from 8 to 10 hours. These basic hours show how much sleep is necessary for the human body.
Sleep disorders can impact your general health in various ways. With severe sleep apnea, the risk of hypertension and heart attacks increases manifold. It impacts your daytime functioning, which may lead to accidents and a reduction in work productivity.
Your overall mental health is also adversely impacted by sleep disorders, and many are prone to depression due to lack of sleep. The risk of other neurological diseases may also increase if you are sleep-deprived for a long time.
It can bring in additional health hazards with obesity and weight gain like thyroid, diabetes and immunological disease.
Pro tip: If you are someone whose lifestyle happens to disrupt regular sleep, it is safer to insure health with a comprehensive health insurance plan such Care Supreme. At times some illnesses take turn to become acute or chronic which may require frequent medical intervention. With a medical insurance in place you can at least manage the treatment expenses without breaking your banks.
How to Maintain Sleep Cycle?
There are 4 stages of sleep, and your body goes through each stage around four to six times every night.
- Stage 1 is the light sleep stage of the Non-rapid Eye Movement (NREM) stage, when your brain, heart, and muscles slow down and relax. This lasts only for a few minutes.
- Stage 2 is the deep sleep stage, during which heart, brain, and eye activities stop and body temperature drops. This lasts for about 25 minutes and increases with each sleep cycle.
- Stage 3, the deepest sleep stage, is the best time when your body repairs, rejuvenates and rebuilds the immune system. The heart, muscle and brain activities are at their lowest and it is hardest to awaken from. This stage is believed to cover 25% of the normal sleep time.
- Stage 4, the dreaming or Rapid Eye Movement stage (REM) consists of 25% of the total sleep time. At this time, your heart rate and breathing increase along with your eye movements. The brain activity is akin to wakefulness, but your muscles are still relaxed.
It is important to understand the sleep stages to know how to maintain the sleep cycle and also how to improve sleep quality. Besides having a consistent sleep schedule, you can follow these steps to improve your sleep hygiene:
- Keeping your lights on for a long late into the night can cause your body to forcibly stay awake, and gradual and natural transitioning to sleep can be difficult.
- You need to be off your mobile phones and laptops at least an hour before bed to prevent the blue light of the screen from causing excess mental stimulation.
- Exercising regularly not only helps with your physical health but also promotes restful sleep. A light walk or short run can also help you get a night with proper deep sleep. You can even incorporate meditation and yoga before bedtime to induce deep sleep.
- You can have a consistent bedtime routine of brushing your teeth, doing meditation, reading a book, and listening to relaxing music. With time these actions become bedtime cues to your body.
- Limiting alcohol or caffeine can improve the quality of your sleep. Alcohol may make you feel drowsy and prone to sleep, but it affects your overall sleep cycle with bouts of awakening. Caffeine makes you alert and wired, leading to restlessness while you sleep.
If you still have sleeping problems, take the help of your healthcare provider to reset your sleep routine or understand the root cause of sleeplessness. Additionally, go for a health plan that will wipe the worry off your face with its preventive and wellness benefits as well as reduce your financial burden with its coverage assistance. With our Care Supreme plan, you get benefits like 4 physical consultations with specialists and annual health check-ups inclusive of routine tests and diagnostics.
Also Read: How to Sleep after Gallbladder Surgery?
To Sum Up
As you can see, sleep is important for physical and mental health. It is necessary to align your lifestyle and schedule to give the due rest your body needs via sufficient hours of restful and deep sleep.
Disclaimer: The above information is for reference purposes only. Kindly consult your general physician for verified medical advice. The health insurance benefits are subject to policy terms and conditions. Refer to your policy documents for more information.
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