The Importance of Regular Sleep for Health

Although it may seem like a simple element, regular sleep improves the quality of life by positively affecting health in many aspects. To date, many studies have shown that adults who sleep regularly between 7 and 8 hours are resistant to many diseases, both physical and mental. Of course, at this point, in addition to the total time spent sleeping, its quality should also be taken into account. If a person still feels tired after sleeping for long hours, they should see a therapist.
Sleep times recommended by experts for different age groups are as follows:

• 8 – 10 hours for young people,
• 9 – 12 hours for school age children,
• 10 – 13 hours for preschool children,
• 11 – 14 hours for toddlers,
• 12 – 16 hours for babies.

The benefits of sleeping regularly within these periods to the body are as follows:

It is Beneficial for Heart Health
In many scientific studies conducted today, lack of sleep has been associated with worsening blood pressure and cholesterol, which are risk factors for heart disease and stroke. On the contrary, during a 7 to 8 hour long sleep, blood pressure decreases and the heart and blood vessels rest. This contributes to a healthier heart.

Makes the Body Energetic
A good night's sleep makes a person feel energetic the next day and makes him more productive and positive in his daily activities. This strengthens immunity and makes the person more resistant to mental and physical challenges. Regular and quality sleep also contributes to the completion of muscle repair in the body, and all these pluses increase motivation.

Balances Blood Sugar
During the deepest stage of sleep, the amount of glucose (also known as blood sugar) in the blood drops. This means that as sleep duration decreases, the decrease in glucose levels will also decrease. However, inadequate sleep has been identified as a new and important risk factor for the development of diabetes. So much so that, in many recent studies, it has been determined that 3 out of 4 people with diabetes have sleep problems. This shows that there is a direct relationship between inadequate sleep and diabetes. For this reason, experts recommend sleeping between 7 and 8 hours; With regular sleep, the possibility of developing type 2 diabetes will also decrease.


Improves Memory & Makes Learning Easier
As the amount of quality sleep decreases, people begin to have difficulty remembering details. This is because sleep plays a big role in both learning new things and remembering existing information.
Regular and quality sleep ensures full focus, regardless of the subject, and makes it easier to record new information in the mind. It is important to rest the mind and body for a sufficient period of time in order to properly store memories and details that are important to the person.

Helps the Body Fight Harmful Organisms
One of the most important functions of regular sleep is that it directly and positively affects immunity. As it is known, the immune system detects harmful bacteria and viruses in the body and destroys them before any disease occurs. However, in case of long-term insomnia, immune cells change the way they work and attack harmful organisms more slowly and with longer intervals. While this causes infection-related problems to progress, it also seriously damages the person's immune system.
In addition, some studies have shown that many people, especially those with breast and colon cancer, are deprived of quality night sleep. This is due to a decrease in levels of melatonin, a hormone that regulates the sleep cycle. So much so that melatonin provides protection against cancer by suppressing cells that are prone to overgrowth.


Provides Weight Control
The correlation between weight loss & maintaining a healthy weight and sleep is actually very clear: a well-rested body requires fewer nutrients. Sleep deprivation prevents the balanced secretion of leptin and ghrelin hormones, which keep appetite under control. In case of not getting regular sleep, resistance to foods especially rich in sugar and carbohydrates decreases. However, the already tired body is not open to movement, and in this case, weight gain becomes inevitable.

Heals Spiritually & Reduces Stress
As sleep quality and duration decrease, the time for the brain to decide how to react to what is happening in the outside world also decreases. In this situation, the person cannot rest mentally and tends to have more negative reactions due to not being able to process emotions. In addition, chronic lack of sleep causes mood disorders. So much so that recent comprehensive studies have revealed that people who are sleep deprived are five times more likely to develop depression than people who sleep regularly. The same goes for anxiety or panic disorder.
However, sleep, which allows the stress hormone to decrease, is also very effective in eliminating various problems that develop due to stress and anxiety. By resting regularly, it is possible to look at life more positively and increase the level of coping with the emotional difficulties encountered during the day.

Helps the Body Renew Itself
Although sleep is basically considered a period of relaxation, it is a process in which the body creates the building blocks of cells by producing more proteins than during the day. In this process, the damage caused to the body by many harmful elements, especially stress and ultraviolet rays, is repaired; In this way, a renewal occurs from head to toe.