There is tons of information on sleep that explains the physical and psychological aspects that occur during this period of time. Sleep does wonders to the human body, which makes one curious how sleep affects the body and mind. Regardless of scientific facts, we know every person feels better in the morning when obtaining adequate amounts of sleep for body and mind.
The Study of Sleep
Studies have shown that getting too little or too much sleep is bad for your health. In a society that demands much of your time and attention, it is difficult sometimes to obtain the necessary sleep that you’re body needs. It has been said that Thomas Edison would only sleep 4 hours a night with 20 minute naps during the day to maintain momentum with the many patents that he developed. On average, Americans get 6.8 to 7 hours of sleep during weekdays and over 50% have insomnia.
It is vital to get enough sleep if you are to perform well while awake. Studies have shown that at a certain point, without any sleep, your brain starts to hallucinate. Scientists have studied the importance of sleep and have found that when forcing a rat to stay awake, would eventually die. Having this type of information on sleep builds awareness of the importance it is for your body to obtain adequate amounts of rest.
If you are an ambitious one who decides to pull an all-nighter, typically this won’t be fatal to your health, but will create strong irritability. Staying up for a total of 2 days makes it very difficult to stay alert and your attention span decreases significantly. By day three, a typical symptom that occurs is hallucinations. In other words, depriving yourself of adequate sleep has the same effect on your body as it does when obtaining toxic substances. Having too little sleep slows the growth and development of a child. It also causes your immune system to perform poorly, increasing your susceptibility to diseases.
Your body operates like a battery. Energy is used typically during the day. At a certain point, your body needs time to repair itself, replacing damaged cells and tissues that naturally occur with the wear and tear of the day. There are theories that claim it is important for your brain to dream. When we sleep, our energy consumption drops significantly, allowing our body to regroup and charge. However, there are crucial stages that need to occur during the night when sleeping.
Taking a Siesta
There are certain cultures that stop what they are doing in the middle of the day and take a siesta, which is a brief nap in the early afternoon. As you dig into information on sleep, you’ll find that many companies are catching on to the siesta approach in the middle of the day. Taking a brief 10-15 minute nap increases alertness, work ethic, and prevents unnecessary sick days. Forcing your body to work an 8 to 5 everyday takes a toll on your body, especially if you have trouble sleeping already during the night.
The 5 Stages of Sleep
There are 5 stages of sleep that occur. Each stage typically lasts every 15 to 20 minutes. Stage 3 and 4 is where the body begins to repair, build bone and muscle tissue and strengthen the immune system. The first 4 stages are referred to as NREM (non-rapid eye movement). The 5th stage if the sleep cycle is called the REM (rapid eye movement) stage. This is where dreaming occurs. It is important to go through the sleep cycles multiple times during the night. The sleep cycle allows your body to perform necessary repairs.
With an abundance of information on sleep and studies out there, there are many relevant topics relating to sleep that we can read about and learn from. We will learn about different types of sleeping disorders, things you can do to help you sleep, how babies sleep and other relevant topics.
