Sleep - Health and Happiness | Wealth and Wellness

Sleep – Health and Happiness

Studies have shown that sleep is vital for survival. Beyond just restoring body's energy levels, there are many other benefits we have from proper sleep. Good sleep is essential for functioning well both physically and mentally, during our waking hours. Adequate sleep can enable you to work productively, make sound judgments, recover from illness and interact with other people effectively.

During sleep, hormones which repairs and regenerates tissues through out the body is secreted. Deep sleep helps the body to reconstruct damage from stress, ultraviolet rays etc. Building of bones and muscles and strengthening of immune system are also taking place during sleep. With an adequate amount of sleep you can stay fresh, energetic, cheerful and most importantly not being grumpy.

Here are a few fun facts about sleep:

An average person takes 7.5 hours sleep
Infants takes on an average of 14 hours sleep
Seniors average 6 hours sleep
Before the invention of lights, humans used to sleep for 9 hours on average
When all awareness to time of day are removed with darkness, humans sleep about 10.3 hours

Why Sleep?

When you sleep, your body rests and restores its energy levels. Sleep is not a totally passive state of body even though it is a passive state of conscious activity. During different stages of sleep the subconscious mind is at different levels of activity which is vital for the performance and mental well being. A good night's sleep is often the best way to help you cope with stress, solve problems, or recover from illness.

What Happens During Sleep?

Sleep consists of two basic states: rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, which consists of 4 Stages. Sleep is prompted by natural cycles of activity of the brain.During sleep, the body cycles between non-REM and REM sleep. Typically, people begin the sleep cycle with a period of non-REM sleep followed by a very short period of REM sleep. Dreams generally occur in the REM stage of sleep.

How Much Sleep Do You Need?

The amount of sleep a person needs depends on the individual. The need for sleep depends on various factors, one of which is age. Infants usually require about 16-18 hours of sleep per day, while teenagers need about 9 hours per day on average. Most adults need about 7-8 hours of sleep per day.The amount of sleep a person needs also increases if he or she has been deprived of sleep. People do not seem to adapt to getting less sleep than they need.

Sleep Medicine

Sleep medicine is a highly specialized field and it is a medical subspecialty devoted to the diagnosis and therapy of sleep disturbances and disorders. The first sleep clinic in the United States were established in the 1970s by interested doctors and technicians. Dr.Ken Plotkin, Medical Director and CEO of Sleep Insights is a Diplomat of the American Board of Sleep Medicine and a Fellow of the American Association of Sleep Medicine. Dr Plotkin, a Board Certified Neurologist, specializes in sleep disorders .

What Are the Consequences of Too Little Sleep?

Too little sleep may cause:

Impaired memory and thought processes.
Depression.
Decreased immune response.

Tips for Getting Good Sleep

Sleep in a well-ventilated room.
Sleep on a firm bed.
Exercise moderately
Do not take nap during day
Sleep only when you feel sleepy.
Drink a glass of warm milk 15 min. before going to bed.
Listen to soft soothing music.
Learn to meditate. A>

View Comments

Clerk says:

February 16, 2010 at 9:20 am

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