How Does Sleep Affect My Health?

Posted on 28 June, 2023

Many people believe they can operate well enough on very little sleep. However, sleep deprivation can cause a myriad of issues that are detrimental to your health and safety. 

 

In this blog, we discuss the potential ways sleep can alter your health. 

5 Ways Sleep Impacts Overall Health

Physical Health

It is no surprise that quality of sleep is closely tied to a person’s physical health. Sleep equips our immune systems to fight off illnesses. Plus, many crucial body processes occur as we sleep.

 

For example, our bodies release hormones during sleep that promote cell repair and dictate how we use energy. Not only is this critical for healing wounds, but it has a big impact on body weight and metabolism.

 

Additionally, the slowing of our heart rate, breathing rate, and blood pressure at night is critical for cardiovascular health.

Mental Well-Being

Without good sleep, your brain cannot function at its ideal capacity. The more you sleep at night, the better you will be able to…

 

  • Learn and remember information

  • Focus on tasks at hand

  • Solve problems in your day-to-day routine

  • Make positive decisions

  • Manage your emotions and stress

  • And cope with life challenges and changes

 

In fact, research has linked sleep deprivation with depression, lost motivation, suicide, and impulsive behavior.

Productivity

Taking a toll on mental health, lack of sleep can also change how you complete your daily work. Sleep deprivation often causes people to make more mistakes, take longer to finish work, and react more slowly.

 

This is not limited to adult workplace performance. Sleep deprived children often have a harder time paying attention during class and completing assignments that require problem solving or memorization.

 

Plus, getting a good night’s sleep also allows you to be more creative and come up with outside-of-the-box solutions.

Safety

In some cases, sleep deprivation can even lead directly to safety issues. Without the proper amount of sleep, many people can enter into what is called “microsleep” during the day.

 

Microsleep is a term for short periods of sleep that occur when you would regularly be awake, such as when you are driving or when you are at work. 

 

Such uncontrollable sleep can cause people to make very dangerous mistakes, such as swerving into the wrong lane on the road, improperly operating heavy machinery, or making errors in critical calculations.

Chronic Conditions

Research has shown that sleep deprivation coincides with a wide range of long-term health problems, such as…

 

  • Diabetes and insulin resistance

  • Heart disease

  • Stroke

  • Depression

  • Anxiety

  • And more

 

HME Locations | Find a Sleep Center Near You!

Need to do a sleep study or find a CPAP? HME Locations is your one-stop shop for all sleep center and home medical equipment needs! Use our online tools to find home medical equipment and sleep centers.

 

Need to find a sleep study location near you? Use our handy sleep center search tool. 

 

Want to read more?  

Here is some more sleep-related content.

 
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