To Book an Appointment

Importance of Sleep in Brain Health

By Medical Expert Team

Nov 07 , 2020 | 1 min read

Skimming on sleep can cause a myriad of issues. Sleep is regenerative, restorative and rejuvenating. It gives time to the body to reboot and the brain to consolidate and refresh itself.

I can’t remember anything, can’t focus….Your brain won’t function optimally. Sound sleep is paramount for proper brain function. More than usual we hear people complaining of lack of concentration, decreased attention span, blanking out in the middle of a conference, poor memory and task execution. Sleep helps the brain to rearrange itself. In a way the brain is able to clear the clutter and form new connections amongst brain cells to function better. More the number of connections better the memory and brain function.

Those mood swings are for real…. Your brain regulates the hormones and the neurotrasnmitters. These chemicals are basically responsible for the way you feel. Chemical compounds like dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin help us feeling good, happy and upbeat. Sleep plays an important role in their regulation. Lack of sleep can make you irritated, impulsive and angry. The moments when you over react and have an outburst are more likely to happen when you have not slept well.

Lack of sleep makes you slow. Sleep deprivation slows down the brain’s ability to react quickly. Tired drivers and pilots tend to have more accidents and that is a well known fact. Sleep deprivation slows down the brain akin to getting drunk. Just like you should not be driving under the influence of alcohol the same applies to sleep deprivation.

Beautiful are those who sleep. Literally! Consistently skimping on sleep can lead to dark circles, puffy eyes, premature wrinkling and sagging of your skin. Stress hormones like cortisol increase when you are sleep deprived. Cortisol breaks down the muscle and collagen in the skin leading to premature ageing.

Lack of sleep can affect your heart. Sleep deprivation can increase your risk of developing high blood pressure which can lead to cardiac disease later on in life.

Sleep your way to weight loss. Lack of sleep leads to hunger pangs and cravings which can derange your weight loss goals. Moreover the stress hormones slow down the metabolism and make it hard to gain lean muscle which in turn affects weight loss as well.Immunity is dependent on sleep. When you’re tired and even moderately sleep-deprived, your immune function is compromised. Infections like flu, common cold are more common in peple who don’t get adequate sleep and are chronically stressed.