Benefits of Sleep
Why is Sleep so Important?
Promotes growth
- Sleep triggers the body to release hormones that promote normal growth in children and teens. This hormone also boosts muscle mass and helps repair cells and tissues in children, teens, and adults.
- Helps heart health
Sleep is an essential time for the body to recuperate. During the non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep
stages, heart rate slows, blood pressure drops, and breathing stabilizes. These changes reduce stress on the heart, allowing it to recover from strain that occurs during waking hours.
- Supports weight management
Sleep may be a key component of weight loss. It can influence hunger and satiety, energy production, and motivation for physical activity. Getting a good night’s sleep is helpful for everyone.. An adequate sleep schedule of seven to nine hours per night can maintain physical, emotional, and mental heal
- Helps combat germs
German researchers have discovered one way sleep improves the body's ability to fight off a cold. Sleep, it seems, strengthens the potency of certain immune cells by improving their chances of attaching to-and eventually destroying-cells infected with viruses.
- Helps keep your immune system strong
Researchers have found that during nightly sleep, certain components of the immune system rev up. For example, there is an increased production of cytokines associated with inflammation. This activity appears to be driven both by sleep and by circadian rhythm, which is the body’s 24-hour internal clock.
- Reduces risk of injury
Sleep gives the body a chance to repair and regenerate from the day – muscles, tendons, ligaments, bones and growth plates need this time to recover to help prevent overuse injuries. Sleep also helps with reaction time, which is integral in most sports.
- Increases attention span
When people don't get enough sleep, their attention and concentration abilities decline. Their reaction time lengthens, they're inattentive, and they don't respond as well to environmental signals. That means they can't take in new information or react to dangerous situations.
- Boosts memory and learning
Memory - Memories seem to become more stable in the brain during the deep stages of sleep. After that, REM—the most active stage of sleep—seems to play a role in linking together related memories, sometimes in unexpected ways. That’s why a full night of sleep may help with problem-solving.
- Learning - When you learn something new, the best way to remember it is to sleep on it. That’s because sleeping helps strengthen memories you’ve formed throughout the day. It also helps to link new memories to earlier ones. You might even come up with creative new ideas while you slumber.
