Contents:
- Medical Video: The Importance of Sleep: 8 Scientific Health Benefits of Sleep + Sleeping Tips
- Why do I need sleep?
- List of benefits of sleep is enough for health
- 1. Sleeping for seven to eight hours can make you live longer
- 2. Controlling appetite
- 3. Improve the immune system
- 4. Improve memory
- How to get enough sleep
Medical Video: The Importance of Sleep: 8 Scientific Health Benefits of Sleep + Sleeping Tips
If you have maintained your diet and exercise regularly but are not balanced with adequate rest every night, then all your healthy living efforts are just in vain. Because, the length and quality of sleep plays an important role in the development of your body's health. So, how can sleep affect the body and what are the benefits of sleep enough for health?
Why do I need sleep?
Reporting from Healthline, a recent scientific study shows that lack of sleep can cause significant changes in the body. Because, lack of sleep can increase your risk of experiencing a number of serious health problems, including diabetes, heart disease, obesity, sleep apnea, until early death.
The length of sleep of seven to eight hours is actually recommended only for adults, including the elderly. Meanwhile, young people like children and teenagers have longer hours of sleep than adults. The following are recommended sleep times according to the age category:
- Babies or toddlers: 16-18 hours
- Preschool children: 11-12 hours
- Elementary school children: 10 hours
- Teenagers: 9-10 hours
- Adults and the elderly: 7-8 hours
List of benefits of sleep is enough for health
Sleep is included in activities that have a myriad of benefits. When you sleep, the brain releases hormones and compounds that help with several processes in the body, including:
1. Sleeping for seven to eight hours can make you live longer
Too much or lack of sleep turns out to be associated with someone's life expectancy, although this can also be influenced by various things such as illness. However, at least the length and quality of sleep plays a role in extending your life.
This was proven by researchers from England and Italy who analyzed data from 16 separate studies. This study involved more than 1.3 million people by looking at their sleep habits. Surprising facts show that people who sleep less than six hours every night tend to be at risk of experiencing premature death by 12 percent.
They also found that people who reduced sleep time from seven hours to five hours or less had 1.7 times the risk of death more quickly. So indirectly, this shows that one of the benefits of getting enough sleep is lengthening life expectancy.
2. Controlling appetite
When you sleep at night, your calorie needs will decrease due to lack of movement. This is what makes energy needs decrease. However, when you lack sleep, the brain organs will reduce levels of leptin, a hormone that creates a feeling of fullness. As a result, you become easily hungry.
Then, you will be encouraged to meet your body's energy needs so that in the end you decide to eat more. This will be exacerbated if you lack exercise so that your weight is increasingly uncontrollable.
Not only for adults, lack of sleep can also affect children's health. A 2014 study showed that children who lack sleep experience a risk of obesity and an increase in body mass index (BMI). If left continuously, this effect will continue until they are adults. To find out if your current body mass index is ideal, count it with this IMT calculator or at bit.ly/indeksmassatubuh.
3. Improve the immune system
When you sleep, your immune system secretes compounds called cytokines. This compound has a protective effect on your immune system by helping fight inflammation and infection. Without getting enough sleep, you might not have enough cytokines to block your body from getting sick.
A study conducted in 2013 found that lack of sleep can increase the amount of inflammatory compounds in the body. This condition is the same as when you have asthma or allergies.
4. Improve memory
Do you often forget? Well, it could be because you lack sleep. The reason is, one of the benefits of sleep is that it can strengthen your memory. A study shows that sleeping after learning can help improve memory. If you do not get enough sleep, you will tend to easily forget about things that you have passed before.
Sleeping for seven to eight hours can make you experience all stages of sleep. Two phases of sleep, namely the REM phase and slow wave sleepcan launch a process of remembering and creative thinking.Meanwhile, people who lack sleep will experience some things that can interfere with memory, including:
- Difficult to receive information, because neurons in the brain work too hard.
- Tend to interpret events differently.
- Tends to lose the ability to remember certain information.
How to get enough sleep
The difficulty of getting enough sleep is usually influenced by several factors. I don't know because I'm busy playing gadget, excessive anxiety, or stress. Well, here are some quick ways to sleep that you can apply starting today, including:
- Make a sleep schedule. Try to sleep and wake up at the same time every day of the week, including on weekends. This is useful for shaping your sleep cycle.
- Avoid sleep disorders, such as caffeine, chocolate, nicotine, and alcohol.
- Create a comfortable sleeping atmospherefor example by adjusting the coolant temperature and turning off the lights to create a quiet environment.
- Regular exercise. Avoid exercise too close to bedtime because this can keep you awake.
- Reduce stress. Having stress after an activity often makes it difficult for you to sleep. Well, you can do yoga, meditation, massage, or a walk to reduce stress.
