Sleeping Sickness: How Losing Sleep May Be Damaging Your Health

Updated on April 8, 2021

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Time to Wake Up?

● Fatigue is a Fatigue in 100,000 auto crashes and 1,550 crash-related deaths a year in the U.SHow Much Sleep?● For optimal functionality, adults need an average of 7-9 hours of sleep a night○ In a major sleep study, almost 80% of respondents admitted that they were not getting enough sleep

Sleep Deprived Disasters

Nuclear Accident at Three Mile IslandExperts believe that sleep deprivation was a significant factor in shiftworker's negligence● Space Shuttle Challenger DisasterAccording to reports, certain managers involved in the launch had only slept two hours before arriving to work at 1 a.m. that morning● Exxon Valdez Oil SpillThird mate Gregory Cousins was allegedly sleeping at the helm after working a 22-hour shift

The Long-Term Effects:

Memory LossWithout sleep, your ability to consolidate memories, learn daily tasks and make decisions is impaired

Weakened Immune SystemEven "modest" sleep deprivation (less than 6 hours of sleep per night) has been directly linked to reduced immune response

Sleep ParalysisThose who are sleep deprived are more likely to wake in an immobilized REM state, resulting in feelings of fear and panic

DepressionThose with insomnia are 5x more likely to develop depression than those without

High Blood PressureSkipping sleep forces your heart to work overtime without a break, increasing your overall blood pressure and potentially leading to other heart conditions

Weight FluctuationsWhen the body stays awake for too long, it struggles to process blood sugar and leptin (a protein hormone that regulates appetite and metabolism)

Damaged BonesResearchers found changes in bone mineral density and bone marrow in rodents who had been deprived of sleep over a period of 72 days

Sleep as a Healer:

• Sleep helps to rid your braid and body of toxins and waste• The flow of cerebrospinal fluid increases significantly during sleep, flushing waste from your brain• Brain cells shrink up to 60% during sleep to make cleaning easier• Sleep elevates the level of inflammation mediators, which can prevent the development of future diseases

How much sleep are you getting?

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Sources:http://health.howstuffworks.com/mental-health/sleep/basics/5-effects-of-sleep-deprivation.htmhttp://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/10-results-sleep-losshttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/06/scary-sleep-deprivation-effects_n_2807026.htmlhttp://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2517096/http://www.evostc.state.ak.us/index.cfm?FA=facts.detailshttp://blog.aarp.org/2013/10/21/a-good-nights-sleep-may-protect-against-dementia/http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3548567/http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsletters/Harvard_Mental_Health_Letter/2009/July/Sleep-and-mental-healthhttp://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/healthy/matters/benefits-of-sleep/learning-memoryhttp://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/262812.phphttp://www.healthcentral.com/alzheimers/stages-8783-108.html?ic=506048http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/healing-power-sleep

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