sleep disorders

How do sleep disorders affect health?

The relation between sleep and overall health of the mind and the body is direct, a sound mind resides in a sound body. Sleep allows the body to recover during the night time, it helps to relieve overall stress of the day by relaxing every muscle of our body so that we wake up fresh and active the next day. However, many people face sleep deficiency due to extreme stress, tension and anxiety. Sleep deficiency not only leaves us tired, but can increase the risk for a wide range of diseases and health problems.

Sleep deficiency is simply an inability to get high-quality sleep which is necessary for the mind and the body to function properly. The person having a good night’s sleep can function efficiently throughout the day without feeling drowsy or dizzy. The fatigue study suggests having sufficient and considerate amount of sleep results in acceleration of the mind and body, through this one can reduce the stress level and maintain optimum operational efficiency. In this article, we will be listing some long-term and short-term effects of having insufficient sleep and how it affects the body organs.

  1. Central nervous system– The central nervous system is the main pathway of the information in the body. The information is carried from the brain and it is spread in every part of the body, this sends signals to our organs to function in a particular way. In order to have a proper supply of information in the body it is necessary to have a healthy nervous system. High-quality sleep is fundamental for keeping the nervous system healthy, as chronic insomnia can affect how your body sends and processes information. Poor nervous system makes it difficult to acquire new things as concentration is triggered due to poor sleep. The signals in the body are hence delayed and you tend to take more time to get a hold of new things than usual. Moreover, the functioning of the central nervous system is dependent on spinal cord as it is the pathway of information. Choosing an appropriate mattress is essential to support the spinal cord. Slumber Search has designed mattress for all types of sleeping postures and body aches which support the back area and side areas of your body well.
  2. Digestive system– 
The Scope Blog - 6 Common Digestive Disorders - Tanner Health System

Eating too much and not exercising is another cause of sleep deprivation. When you eat as per your utility and attain the feeling of fullness. Your body asks for some physical activity so that you burn extra calories, these extra calories in the body results in obesity. Not getting sufficient amount of sleep makes you feel tired and stops you from performing any physical activity. Moreover, in many cases diabetes is a result of sleep deprivation as it lowers the body tolerance for glucose and is associated with insulin resistance.

  1. Respiratory system– The person suffering from sleep deprivation is a victim of obstructive sleep which is a breathing disorder it results in difficulty in breathing at the night time due to which night sleep is disturbed. Sleep fosters respiratory instability due to loss of wakefulness, it is highly risky for the ones already suffering from lung diseases as this worsens the condition and the symptoms. The respiratory cycle is disturbed, more carbon dioxide collects in the body as a result of disturbance in inhalation and exhalation.
  2. Immune system– 
How Our Immune System Works to Fight Viruses - bioMérieux Connection

Having a healthy immune system is highly important as the immune system fights and protects us from various diseases. A person having a healthy immune system is always safe from deadly diseases. Moreover, a healthy immune system results in faster recovery of the body from any virus or infections. In order to have a healthy immune system it is necessary to have high-quality sleep. While you sleep your immune system produces protective, infection fighting substances like antibiotics and cytokines. There are certain kinds of cytokines that help you to sleep and give the body more efficiency to fight illness. On the other hand, if you are sleep deprived then your body is vulnerable towards catching sudden illness as sleep deprivation prevents you from building-up forces to fight.

  1. Cardiovascular system– Cardiovascular system is responsible for pumping the blood from the heart to the lungs to get oxygen. After which the heart sends the oxygenated blood to the rest of the body. To carry out this whole process without any disruption, sleep is necessary. As we discussed in previous points, sleeping affects respiration. This is interrelated to how the cardiovascular system of your body behaves. When you suffer from breathing disorder your lungs feel high pressure and hindrance in pumping the blood. Many times, this causes heart failure and heart stroke. Therefore, healthy sleep is required to have easy pumping and supply of blood in the body.

How to overcome sleep deprivation?

Sleep Deprivation: Symptoms, Causes, and Effects - HelpGuide.org

Experts say, ideally a person should get a minimum of 7 to 9 hours of sleep to make the body function properly, this is considered as an adequate amount of sleep. This is easier said than done, because being sleep deprived for a longer time makes you stick to the habit badly and it is tough to get back to a healthy sleep cycle. This is not a one-day job, it has to be achieved by taking small steps every day. Rather than sleeping the whole day in the name of sleep deprivation try to be as productive as possible so that you catch sleep as soon as you touch the bed during the night. Many a times stress related to personal and professional life makes it difficult for a person to sleep properly but a noteworthy fact is, if you tend to have insufficient sleep due to stress then you will fall victim to many serious health problems in future. Moreover, if one feels helpless then they can always reach the expert to get a proper diagnosis and get potential and possible treatment for the same.

Conclusion

Sleep deprivation is a common and a serious problem of today’s life, there is an increasing number of people suffering from insomnia which is in return giving birth to several other problems such as heart diseases and diabetes. Studies suggests that India is one of the largest countries having heart patients and diabetic patients in the world. This is because people, especially the youth, are going through a poor sleep cycle which is affecting their hormones and causing improper functioning of the body and they become victims of such serious health conditions at an early age. Hence, it is necessary to take serious measures from our end to overcome this issue. Hence, by optimum amount of sleep we can prevent diseases and improve our fatigue and lead a healthy lifestyle.

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