“Why is sleeping important?” Because it constitutes almost 33% part of everyone’s life. So if you’re giving it so much time, then let’s understand its significance and the tips for good sleep. But first, how about knowing some interesting sleeping concepts?
The first one is our Internal Body Clock. Apart from its other functions, the internal body clock signals our mind to sleep. During the daytime, it signals our mind to stay active and alert.
But, as the night falls, it starts sending signals that it’s time to sleep. The natural way is the best way to sleep. When it doesn’t work properly, a person may struggle to sleep or get fragmented or poor-quality sleep.
Do you also think about what’s the best time to sleep? Well, it is when your internal body clock signals you to sleep. Ok, to give you a more precise answer, the best time to sleep is in the nighttime. I am sure from the very beginning of our species, humans tend to sleep when the sun sets and that’s how our biological clock is programmed. Nighttime is the best sleeping hours. Also, this is the time where the internal body clock naturally gives us the signal to sleep.
The second concept is about the Sleep Cycle. Our total sleep comprises of 4-6 sleep cycles. And, each sleep cycle ranges from 90-120 minutes. Also, each sleep cycle includes 4 stages. These sleep stages are vital as they allow the mind and the body to recover and rest properly.
These are some basic and interesting information about how our body signals us to sleep and how we sleep. Now, let’s know about the reasons why is sleeping important?
Contents
Why is Sleeping Important?
1. Sleeping Improves Concentration and Productivity
Good quality sleep helps in improving the concentration and memory of both children and adults. Take your own example, you might be in a school, college or a working professional, you work better when you’ve slept properly. Now, if someone asks how is sleep important, then you have an answer for this.
When you don’t sleep properly, you tend to make more mistakes and also lack focus on whatever you’re doing. According to a study, the interns who don’t sleep properly made 36% more mistakes. That’s the importance of sleep.
2. Sleeping Reduces the Risk of Heart Diseases
Sleeping properly and for enough hours can reduce the risk of heart diseases. According to a study, people who don’t sleep for the required hours, then they have more risk of getting affected with heart diseases.
Getting an adequate amount of good sleep regularly maintains the body’s BP. This in turn increases the health of our heart. It also reduces the risk of strokes. Apart from sleeping, you also need a heart-healthy diet to reduce the risk of heart diseases.
3. Sleeping Enhances Athletic Performance
Better sleep has proved to make a positive impact on speed, accuracy, mental health and reaction. Many athletes like Virat Kohli have said on multiple occasions that good sleep affects the performance of the players. Having proper sleep makes your body and mind rest properly, resulting in improved performance.
Even while doing the normal home gym exercises, you will notice the effects of good sleep. You feel more energetic and active to do the tasks.
4. Sleeping Prevents Depression
Another importance of sleep is that it helps in preventing depression. Lack of sleep affects our mental health and cause problems like depression. It increases the stress and anxiety that can also degrade our overall health. Based on some findings, many people who died because of suicide, are the ones who don’t sleep properly.
People can reduce their stress, anxiety and depression to a certain extent by giving proper rest to the body and the mind. And, sleeping is important for physical and mental rest.
5. Sleeping Affects Emotions and Social Interactions
Poor quality of sleep reduces our ability to interact with people. When someone does not get enough sleep, he/she might face issues with recognizing other people’s emotions.
To prove the point, one study found that people with a lack of sleep had reduced the ability to recognize expressions like happiness and anger.
In general, we don’t notice these issues but they can affect our way with which we interact socially.
6. Sleeping Improves the Immune Function
A night of good sleep is important for a better immune system. For all those who don’t know about the immune system, it is responsible for fighting viruses and bacteria. Getting proper sleep becomes more crucial to increase the power of our immunity during these Covid-19 times.
Some research indicates that sleep helps the immune system in fighting these infections. That’s the reason why it is recommended to get proper sleep when we are not feeling right.
How to Increase the Quality of Sleep?
You’ve enough knowledge about how is sleep important. Now, you might want to know the tips for good sleep. Well, there are some simple ways with which you can do that.
Reduce Caffeine Consumption before Sleeping
Studies have shown that consuming caffeine even 8-10 hours before sleep affects its quality. You may not feel it easily but it affects your sleep. Therefore, try not to drink coffee or tea even in the evenings.
Reduce Blue Light prior to Sleeping
Blue light comes from electronic devices like T.V., mobile phones, computers, etc. It confuses your internal body clock and signals your mind that it is not night yet. Therefore, keep aside all the digital devices to improve the quality of sleep. Instead, you can spend this time reading, writing or chilling with your family.
Be Consistent in Sleeping
The best way to sleep is to have a fixed time to sleep. And, that will also make you sleep faster. Also, you don’t need to try hard to sleep and count sheep. Your internal body clock starts transmitting signals that the sleeping time is near. This also improves the quality of sleep.
Comfortable Sleeping Environment
Your sleeping environment also affects the quality of your sleep. So, make your environment sleeping friendly. That means your room should be cleaned, not too warm or cold, dim lights, etc.
Don’t worry, we’ve got more for you. Know in detail how to sleep better and makes the most out of those sleeping hours.
What should be the Sleeping Duration?
You’ve noticed that the duration of sleep is mentioned multiple times in the blog. So, how much sleep do we need? According to the National Sleep Foundation, the duration of sleep is different for different age groups. The amounts of sleep required by different age groups are as follows:
- Newborns require 14–17 hours
- Infants require 12–15 hours
- Toddlers require 11–14 hours
- Preschoolers require 10–13 hours
- School-aged children require 9–11 hours
- Teenagers require 8–10 hours
- Adults require 7–9 hours
- Older adults require 7–8 hours
Many people think that more sleep is beneficial for them. They are wrong. Researchers find out that longer sleep duration leads to poor sleep quality. If you’re sleeping more or less, both cases can be a problem if it continues for the long term. Yes, sleeping more can also be a symptom of various problems. It is advisable to consult a doctor in such situations.
Frequently Asked Questions about Sleeping
Is sleeping during the day bad?
It can depend on the duration of your nap. If you’ll sleeping for around 30 minutes because of fatigue, then it’s fine. But, if you’re sleeping for 1-2 hours, then you’ll feel difficult to sleep at night. Therefore, sleep during the day only if it is necessary for you due to fatigue or fever.
How do I create the best sleeping environment?
The best sleeping environment is a place that is dark, quiet, and slightly cool. Put off all the lights in your room. You can’t sleep properly in a hot place and leads to fragmented sleeping.
What are the signs of sleep deprivation?
Sleep deprivation happens when you don’t sleep for the required hours. If this is the case with you also, then here are the reasons to find out. Observe whether you are feeling fatigued or drowsy during the day, yawning frequently, feeling difficult to remember or memorize things, or feeling sleepy. If these are the cases, then they can be a sign of lack of sleep.
What happens if I don’t get enough sleep?
As you’ve read above, it could feel difficult to stay active during the day, your brainpower decreases and you feel sleepy. But if it happens continuously, then it can be inviting chronic diseases. Along with the mentioned effects, lack of sleep can lead to depression, high BP, a higher risk of heart attacks, etc.
Can I manage the missed sleep by sleeping more?
There are many instances when we can’t able to sleep properly. So, if you didn’t sleep for the required hours in the last night, try to a short nap of around 30-45 minutes. It will help in staying active and less fatigued. However, if you’re not sleeping enough for many days like on the weekdays, then it can’t be managed. Therefore, try to make a fixed sleeping schedule and sleep properly.
Myths about sleeping
You can train your body to get less sleep.
It is proven scientifically that your body and mind need a certain amount of sleep. In case of less sleep, you’ve already read about the short and long-term effects above. In short, please try to sleep properly and for enough hours. It is just a myth.
The only thing that matters is how long you sleep.
Yes, the duration of sleep matters but also the quality of sleep. If your 8 hours of sleep is fragmented or interrupted, then you can’t expect to be active physically and mentally. Hence, also focus on the quality of sleep along with its duration.
It doesn’t matter at which time you sleep until you sleep for the required hours.
Along with the importance of sleeping, the timing of your sleep is also important. As mentioned above, the best sleeping hours is the nighttime. Also, sleeping on fixed timings can actually increase the quality of sleep. Also, our internal body clock is naturally programmed to sleep during dark hours. So, it’s better to sleep during the night.
When we sleep, our brain shuts down.
There is a popular belief among many that our brain shuts down during our sleep. No, it’s not. Instead in our sleeping hours, our brain’s rhythmic pattern is still on. During the rem movement, it matches with what it would be during the daytime. Moreover, brain activities during sleeping help in improving memory, learning, creativity, and organizing things.
Snoring is not Harmful
This is not true. If you don’t snore frequently and the volume is not loud, then there is no harm. But if the case is the opposite like loud and frequent snoring, then it might be harmful. This can be due to obstructive sleep apnea. It is a respiratory disorder that makes it hard to breathe while sleeping. As a result, you wake up frequently at the night and will lead to poor quality of sleep. It is more common in old age men but can also happen in women and even children.
Conclusion
Now, you have a better understanding of why is sleeping important? Those are some of the reasons why you should sleep properly along with some basic information about how we sleep, how much we should sleep, and tips for good sleep. Having proper sleep makes a positive and healthy impact on your mind and body.