Whether you are a busy college or postgraduate student, a working professional, or a parent juggling work and taking care of kids, chances are that you’ve received less sleep than you would’ve liked. Often, sleep is placed on the back burner in order to accomplish other priorities. However, doing so has negative effects on your physical and mental health. Today, we will be diving into what the science says about sleep deprivation and its effects on the human body.
Sleep is a process that is controlled by stabilizing and 24-hour cycles and is made up of phases that can be divided into rapid eye movement (REM) and non-REM (NREM) stages. NREM accounts for about 75% of sleep time and marks the change from being awake to being asleep. NREM consists of three stages, and the last stage can be considered what we know as “deep sleep.” During NREM sleep, tissues repair, cells regenerate, and the immune system strengthens.
REM sleep falls into the category of what we know as “light sleep.” The REM state is when we begin dreaming.
Studies have found that when we get less sleep, we have a harder time storing memories and learning. Fortunately, logic and rule-based tasks are not as affected by sleep deprivation.
Sleep deprivation does not only affect your learning, it can also affect speech and movement. Long term sleep deprivation can also affect the brain’s ability to change in response to positive or negative developments.
Maybe you’ve noticed that you are hungrier when you get less sleep. This is because sleep deprivation affects the hormones that control hunger: our appetite hormone decreases while our hunger hormone increases. Additionally, studies show that when one gets less sleep, morning blood sugar levels are higher.
In conclusion:
- Sleep is important for memory consolidation, learning, movement and maintaining a healthy appetite. However, it isn’t all you need to maintain a healthy lifestyle — eating a healthy diet and exercising frequently are important alongside good sleep hygiene.
- Studies show that sleep is important for consolidating information and memories, both logical and emotional. Therefore, if you have an exam the next day, the best way to prepare is by getting enough sleep!