How sleep can prevent mental illnesses

We’ve all been told how important sleep is for our health, especially in recent times, as more scientific evidence sheds light on this matter. The long-term effects of slacking on sleep are increased hypertension, diabetes, depression, obesity, and heart attack, amongst others. On a short-term basis, the symptoms or disorders that can present themselves are increased desire for fatty and sugary foods, weight gain, decreased libido, dull looking skin, anxiety, mood swings and lowered immunity.

Do you really want to experience all these symptoms and health hazards? Well, turns out that recent scientific evidence has found that lack of sleep increases your chances of suffering mental illness. Scientists are now discovering that sleep has a huge role in the detoxification of the brain.

The brain has a very important role in our body and uses up 25% of our energy on a daily basis. As a result, it produces a great deal of waste products that need to be removed and drained out of the brain. Essentially, the prime time for it to do this is during sleep, as scientists have discovered that the brain’s draining system is 10 times more active whilst we sleep. In short, sleep is crucial to get rid of the toxins that our brain produces during the day.

One of the toxins that the brain produces is a protein known as beta-amyloid that builds up, if we don’t sleep sufficient hours to detox the brain, and produces plaques that collect around the brain’s nerve cells. These plaques are associated with Alzheimer’s disease.

Research has shown that beta-amyloid levels are highest during the day, and lowest when we sleep, therefore, it’s crucial to get at least 7 hours sleep a night to bring these levels down, and therefore prevent the development of degenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s.

More than ever, science is backing up sleep with the evidence proving it is an essential part of our health and wellbeing. It has a huge affect on our body, how we feel and how we think. Don’t let yourself be fooled with the idea that sleep isn’t essential and you can run on just a few hours in order to get more done during the day. This approach will only backfire on your health. Get your 8 hours a sleep a night!