How better sleep can impact your brain function

These days, people work harder and longer hours, and face increased pressure in their day-to-day lives. But eventually, everyone feels the need to wind down at the end of the day. Remaining busy often comes at the expense of sleep, as people are working themselves into the ground and trying to make the most out of what little time they have left each day. However, it is dangerous to neglect your body's needs, as sleep deprivation can seriously affect your mental and physical health.

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Sleep is a mysterious process that many people don't understand, but scientists have found that sleep severely impacts brain function. Several processes happen while we sleep that are integral in preserving brain health. The idea that your brain "turns off" while you sleep is a complete myth. The truth is that your brain is more active during sleep than when you are awake.

How sleep affects your health
One of the most widely discussed ways that a lack of sleep can affect a person is on their mood. We all know the feeling: after a sleepless night, we wake up feeling irritable and short-tempered. This feeling, commonly known as "waking up on the wrong side of the bed," can actually be attributed to processes in your brain while you sleep (or, more accurately, the lack thereof when you don't).

Understandably, if your brain doesn't go through these necessary processes, there could be a detrimental effect on your mental health. A lack of sleep causes you to be more susceptible to stress. This is especially the case if you have had less sleep than necessary for multiple days. It's a compounding effect; stress causes you to sleep less, and less sleep causes you to be more stressed. People must avoid getting into this cycle because it can be challenging to escape.

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Fundamental brain functions can also be affected by lack of sleep. Scientists studying the brain have found that being deprived of sleep leads to people being less alert and concentrated. This could have some significant consequences, as being less alert also means that your reaction time is slowed. If someone is driving while deprived of sleep, this could potentially cause a car accident. These effects get worse and worse the longer you go without sleep.

This lack of sleep can also affect your productivity. If you're going through the day feeling drowsy and inattentive, your work performance can be significantly impacted. There is the cliche of people falling asleep at school or work after a long night, but even beyond that, your ability to focus on any given task is reduced when you cannot sleep.

Scientists have also found that physical health and sleep go hand in hand. Sleep has a maintenance-like effect that clears toxins out of your brain. A lack of sleep has been connected to health consequences like depression, as well as physical issues like heart disease and diabetes. Many people see sleep as a luxury — a time to get a bit of relief after a long day — but in reality, it's an essential medical process.

Over time, a lack of sleep can cause some chronic issues that negatively affect your mental health. Chronic insomnia is connected to several mood disorders like depression and anxiety. These conditions go beyond mere irritability and lack of productivity, and can ultimately reduce a person's ability to function. With just a few extra hours of sleep, you can prevent these conditions from developing.

Promoting good health through better sleep
Many people ask how they can prevent these effects, and the easiest solution is getting the proper amount of sleep. However, there isn't a set amount of sleep that every person needs to get. An individual's sleep needs are determined by several factors, such as age and general health. A baby will require significantly more sleep than an older person, but for the average adult, the general range that you should aim for is 7–10 hours. This gives your body the amount of time it needs to recover.

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You can take remedial steps to fix some of these issues even after they arise. Although it can be challenging to restore a healthy sleep schedule after you've gotten so far off of one, if you can return to consistently getting an adequate amount of sleep every night, some of these mental and physical health effects can be reversed. Thankfully, it's not a situation where the damage done can’t be reversed.

The benefits of a good night of sleep are apparent: you are more productive, healthier, and have a better mood. The consequences of being sleep-deprived may start small, but will continue to build until they take a serious toll on your body and mind. Insomnia is widespread, but that doesn't mean there aren't solutions you can take to have a better, healthier sleep.