December 18th, 2019 by Chris Chapman

We all know what it feels like after a night of poor sleep. You’ll feel tired, grouchy, and probably a little miserable, and while this isn’t nice, it won’t harm your health if it’s a very rare occurrence. However, if you regularly deprive yourself of sleep, you’ll find that your health starts to suffer, affecting every part of your life! Not getting enough sleep is a real problem in this day and age, so read on for a few reasons why you should prioritise the amount – and quality – of sleep you’re getting.

Sleep Helps Your Mental Health

It goes without saying that you’re more likely to be unhappy if you’re tired all the time, however, this link between poor sleep and mental health goes a little deeper than that. A regular lack of sleep can lead to serious problems like depression and anxiety. A lack of sleep can throw off the balance of hormones in your body, which can result in a low mood. It also affects you emotionally, as sleep is the time when your brain processes the thoughts and memories of the day. If your brain doesn’t get the chance to do this, it can have an impact on your mental health.

All of this doesn’t just affect your mood, it also affects your weight, concentration, and motivation, which can create a vicious cycle that’s hard to get out of. Getting trapped in this cycle is worryingly easy – you might have a stressful day at work and be unable to sleep that night as a result. As you’re tired, your performance at work may suffer the next day, leading to more stress, which leads to less sleep, and so on. According to the NHS, the majority of people with anxiety and depression get less than 6 hours of sleep a night, so prioritising the amount of sleep you get is a good way to help fight off stress and boost your mental health.

Sleep Helps Your Immune System

We’ve all been there; you’re feeling tired and run down, and then you end up getting ill. You might think this is just bad luck, but there is actually a strong link between how much sleep you get and how often you get ill. The odd late night here and there won’t affect you, but if you regularly deprive yourself of quality sleep your immune system will be weakened! This means you’re much more prone to all kinds of bugs, from minor sniffles to more serious illnesses.

Lack of Sleep Increases Your Risk of Diabetes

Diabetes and sleeplessness go together all too well, with one often leading to the other in a vicious cycle. Diabetes often leads to sleep loss, but sleep deprivation can also increase the likelihood of you catching diabetes, too! You may not realise it, but when you’re sleep-deprived, you create a perfect storm of changes in your body that massively increase your risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Firstly, sleep deprivation affects your behaviour by making you crave sugar while also reducing your impulse control. This is because your body is constantly searching for a quick sugar rush to make up for how tired it feels, so you’ll find yourself reaching for snacks and junk food more often. This isn’t a problem if it happens occasionally – we all need a treat every now and then – but if it happens regularly, your body will start to struggle to deal with all the extra sugar in your blood. Some doctors also believe that sleep deprivation affects how your body processes sugar, which only makes matters worse.

Sleep Affects Your Weight and Digestion

Many of your body’s functions are controlled by hormones, which are in turn controlled by your brain. If your brain isn’t getting the rest it needs at night, then it can release too many or too few of these hormones, affecting your behaviour in many different ways without you even realising.

Two of these hormones are leptin and ghrelin, which control feelings of hunger and fullness respectively. When you haven’t had a proper night’s sleep, your body produces more ghrelin (which makes you feel hungry) and less leptin (which makes you feel full). What this adds up to is: you’ll be eating more and putting on weight!

Sleep Deprivation Can Increase Your Blood Pressure

Sleep is definitely good for your heart! It not only helps your body deal with sugar and cholesterol as we mentioned above, but sleep can also help reduce inflammation around the body. While you sleep, your body has the chance to maintain your blood vessels, helping improve circulation and keeping blood pressure down.

On the other side of the coin, if your body doesn’t get the rest it needs it can lead to increased blood pressure. If you have problems with blood pressure, making sure you get a good night’s sleep is even more vital, as sleep deprivation can make them worse.

Catching Up on Sleep

If you miss out on sleep, you’re in sleep debt! When you’re in sleep debt, your body and mind will be looking to “pay off” that debt in any way they can. Sometimes, this means they’ll crave strong coffee or sugary snacks for a quick energy boost, but you shouldn’t rely on that extra-large latte to get you through the day! This can result in a bad crash when the sugar high wears off. The only way to pay off your sleep debt is to get a little more sleep the next night. Go to bed a little earlier, treat yourself to a heated blanket, get cosy, and fall asleep earlier. As long as you wake up at the same time in the morning, you shouldn’t affect your sleep schedule, and you’ll find you feel refreshed and well-rested once again.