{"id":6418,"date":"2021-06-24T13:30:00","date_gmt":"2021-06-24T20:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lifestyle.org\/why-you-need-sleep-and-how-to-get-more\/"},"modified":"2023-08-04T10:38:29","modified_gmt":"2023-08-04T17:38:29","slug":"why-you-need-sleep-and-how-to-get-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lifestyle.org\/why-you-need-sleep-and-how-to-get-more\/","title":{"rendered":"Why You Need Sleep And How to Get More"},"content":{"rendered":"

The quality of your sleep affects your quality of life. Period. Sleep isn\u2019t a luxury or a guilty pleasure. Your body, mind and soul require rest to be healthy and for you to be at your best.<\/p>\n

We spend up to a third of our life sleeping. During sleep, our brain is hard at work restoring and maintaining critical systems. Here\u2019s more information on this amazing process called sleep and how it impacts on our well-being.<\/p>\n

SLEEP STAGES<\/h4>\n

During sleep, your brain cycles between two stages: (rapid-eye movement) REM and non-REM. Each lasts about 90 minutes.<\/p>\n

The first part of the sleep cycle is non-REM, which has three phases:<\/p>\n

Phase 1 is when you\u2019re just falling asleep.<\/p>\n

Phase 2 is light sleep. Body temperature drops and heart rate slows.<\/p>\n

Phase 3 is deep, restorative sleep when your heartbeat slows the most.<\/p>\n

Following the non-rem stage of sleep is, you guessed it, the REM (rapid eye movement) stage. This is when brain activity is most active; the eyes dart quickly from side to side. Most of your dreams happen during this stage; heart rate increases, and breathing is quicker.<\/p>\n

Did you know that during REM sleep your arms and legs are temporarily paralyzed? Sleep experts say it\u2019s your brain\u2019s way of protecting you in case your body tries to act out your dreams.<\/p>\n

Deep sleep is essential to memory consolidation and increasing cognitive functions.<\/p>\n

WHY IS SLEEP SO IMPORTANT?<\/h4>\n

It\u2019s amazing what your brain and body do during sleep. They sort through everything you went through during the day to toss away what you don\u2019t need and file away any important information you might need later on.<\/p>\n

When you don\u2019t get the sleep your body and brain require, you affect your ability to pay attention and focus because of the detrimental impact to your frontal lobe.<\/p>\n

Plus, not getting your sleep affects other physiological and metabolic processes, one of which is increasing risk of diabetes and high blood pressure, to name just a couple. And according to research, a lack of sleep is associated with weight gain because of an imbalance between the hormones that make you feel hungry and full.<\/p>\n

Here are some of the other benefits you\u2019ll gain from getting quality rest:<\/p>\n