Sleep has several therapeutic benefits. And that is why medical experts advise that you sleep for 7 to 9 hours daily. When you get adequate sleep, you allow your body to recharge, leaving you energized and refreshed when you wake. But when you deprive yourself of enough sleep, what happens?
Depriving yourself of quality sleep may not seem like a big deal for you at first, especially when it is the sacrifice for completing work tasks, binge-watching an interesting series, or engaging in things that give you pleasure. However, when the effects begin to materialize, it may be too late. Below, we have highlighted a few effects of sleep loss. Perhaps, they may encourage you to start taking your sleep more seriously.
- Accident
After engaging in several mental and physical tasks during the day, your body and mind become drained. At that point, it is crucial you get adequate sleep to refresh your mind and body. But, some people don’t yield to this advice. Instead, they go ahead to drive or operate work machinery, even while drowsy. And the result often gets people injured and properties damaged.
Ensure you get enough sleep daily to refresh your mind and boost your focus. And if you feel drowsy at any point, don’t drive, operate machinery, or engage in tasks that require optimum focus.
- Migraine
First, you shouldn’t confuse a migraine with a headache. A migraine is a severe headache caused by several factors, including emotional stress, missing meals, light, and sleep deprivation.
When you deprive yourself of sleep, your body’s pain threshold plummets. The result? You become more prone to headaches. Migraines can be treated with several migraine treatments, which should be accompanied by lifestyle changes like getting enough sleep, eating when you should, avoiding caffeine, etc.
- Sleep loss can result in severe health issues.
One of the major reasons you should prioritize sleep isn’t because sleep deprivation makes you lose focus. Neither is it because it makes you lightheaded. It is crucial that you get enough sleep each day because failure to do so can put you at the risk of serious health conditions like:
- Heart attack
- Irregular heartbeat
- Heart disease
- Heart failure
- High blood pressure
- Diabetes
- Stroke
Of course, if you’d like to steer clear or protect yourself from any of these medical conditions, you’ll have to ensure that you get 7-9 hours of sleep daily. Anything less than that, as an adult, could spell trouble for you.
- Lack of sleep ages your skin
Dermatologists often advise those who want to improve the appearance of their skin to sleep more. Obviously, this means that sleep plays a key role in the health and appearance of your skin. So, it is a no-brainer that if you fail to get enough sleep, you might put your skin at the risk of skin conditions like fine lines, wrinkles, acne, dark circles, etc.
If, however, you adhere to the doctor’s advice and sleep for the recommended number of hours, you’ll see the positive effects on your skin. And this is because your body increases blood flow to the skin while you sleep, resulting in healthy and glowing skin.
- Sleep loss can make you gain weight.
When you think about weight gain, what springs to your mind? Unhealthy eating, right? But what if we told you that an unhealthy diet isn’t the only reason people gain more weight. Lack of sleep is another common contributor to weight gain and obesity, and many people aren’t even aware of this.
Based on a 2004 study, people who sleep less than six hours daily were almost 30% more likely to become obese than those who slept more ( 7-9 hours). Also, it has been proven that sleep loss stimulates appetite and cravings for high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods, which are common obesity culprits.
So, in layman’s words, you are likely to become obese if you don’t get enough sleep. And if you do, you reduce your chances of being obese.
Conclusion
Getting enough sleep is a form of self-care that shouldn’t be ignored. So, today, make a mental note to sleep for 7-9 hours daily. And if you are finding it hard to sleep, review your bedtime routine and make changes where needed. If there are no improvements, you may want to contact your doctor.
