A good night’s sleep is incredibly important for your health. Anyone who has had a good nights sleep know the feeling of waking up well rested and feeling on top of the world. Sleep is just as important as eating healthy and exercising for your overall wellbeing as sleep is nature’s healer.
Here are 5 ways that sleep will improve your health:
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You will be ill less frequently
Even a small loss of sleep has been shown to impair immune function and your ability to fight off infection. Study after study shows that if you skimp on sleep, your are likely to get ill. The more sleep you get the more you create the optimum environment for your natural defences to work well.
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You will be more relaxed
You will be able to cope netter with the pressures of the day if you get enough sleep. You will help yourself avoid building up high libels of the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline – then they are present you are unlikely to get a good quality deep sleep.
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You will be able to maintain your weight
Poor sleep is strongly linked to weight gain.Your body needs sleep to normalise weight-control hormones. In fact, short sleep duration is one of the strongest risk factors for obesity.
In one extensive review study, people who slept 4 hours a night for two nights running had a 24% increase in appetite, craved sweet, starchy and salty foods and lost interest in fruit, vegetables, protein and dairy products. If you’re trying to lose weight, getting quality sleep is absolutely crucial.
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You will improve your memory
Deep sleep dramatically improves how your brain works. It affects how nerve cells in the brain connect, governing everything from how the brain controls behaviour to the ability to learn or remember.
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You will be at greater risk of heart disease or stroke
It’s known that sleep quality and duration can have a major effect on many health risk factors. These are the factors believed to drive chronic diseases, including heart disease. A review of 15 studies found that people who don’t get enough sleep are at far greater risk of heart disease or stroke than those who sleep 7–8 hours per night.
For more tips on getting a good nights sleep click here.
