Sleep deprivation has become a major problem in our society today. Research indicates that over 60% of adults today suffer from insomnia. Although some people complain that physiological factors like occupation contribute to this, some of them have nothing much to explain about the cause of their lack of sleep. If you suffer from insomnia or just love keeping your eyes open throughout the night, you should think twice. Below are surprising effects of sleep deprivation.
Increases your stress levels
Heard of Cortisol? This stress related hormone rises very high when we deprive ourselves of sleep. This increased level of stress, causes stress related factors like depression, anxiety, mood swings and confusion to take the center stage. So, the only way to combat this harmful effect that can have a negative impact on your life is to make sure that you at least get 7-8 hours of sleep. Stress has a lot of negative effects on your life and if not managed sooner by getting enough sleep, you are more likely to affect those around you.
Leads to weight gain
Gaining a few pounds recently? Maybe you should up your sleep time. Too little sleep causes the body to retain water and leads to increased levels of appetite. You are more likely to eat more when you are sleep deprived than when you get normal hours of sleep. Uncontrolled situations of sleep derivation can lead to obesity which could have a negative impact on your health in general. To combat this situation, make sure you get plenty of sleep each night.
Can lead to chronic illnesses
You are at a higher risk of chronic illnesses like stroke, hear attack, high blood pressure, diabetes, heart failure and heart disease if you do not get enough sleep. Although most of us may not know how sleep is affecting our health in the early days, after prolonged sleep deprivation signs and symptoms of these conditions may begin to show up. To be on the safe side, always get enough sleep and if in case you had less sleep the previous night, be sure to get a nap during the day.
Lack of sleep affects your skin and appearance
Talk of hormonal imbalance, decreased metabolism, dark under eye circles, slow physiological processes in the body like decreased removal of waste can all make a mess in your body. Wrinkly skin, aged skin and pigmented skin is the effect of lack of sleep. Although the skin can be repaired when you start getting enough sleep, the damage done after prolonged sleep deprivation can last and could have a negative impact on your social life.
Lack of sleep impairs your judgement
Not sleeping enough can disrupt your thinking and your judgement in your day to day life problems. This is because naturally little sleep causes you to act slow to almost everything even things that need fast action. When you are sleep deprived, you are more likely to be bombarded with fatigue, forgetfulness, poor decision making, poor concentration and poor reasoning causing you to make bad decisions in everything.
It is very important to get enough shut eye no matter your situations. If you are unsure what is causing you not to sleep, please consult a doctor. There is nothing positive about staying awake the whole night, so get a medical opinion before it is too late.