It is recommended that individuals receive approximately seven to nine hours of sleep every night. Sleep plays an important role in ensuring that you remain healthy and productive for years to come. When you are sleep deprived, different functions and organs in your body will not be operating at optimum levels, which can be detrimental for your physical and mental health. For instance, chronic sleep deprivation has been linked to increased risk for obesity, heart disease, stroke, depression, and type 2 diabetes. The following are some of the signs of sleep deprivation that you should always be on the lookout for and arrest immediately by improving your sleeping patterns.
One major sign of sleep deprivation is constant hunger. Scientists assert that if your body is not receiving the energy it needs from sleep, it will compensate by retrieving the energy from food. When your body is low on sleep, it will increase the production of ghrelin, a hormone responsible for alerting you that you are hungry. When there is too much of this hormone in your blood stream, you tend to crave sugary and fatty foods. In addition, lack of adequate amounts of sleep will result in the under-production of leptin, commonly referred to as the satiety hormone. Thus, you will eat more of what you are craving because the hormone that should tell you to stop eating is not being produced in sufficient amounts.
Another sign of sleep deprivation is weight gain. Obviously, you will add a few more pounds because your food cravings have increased and you hardly ever fill satiated. However, a lack of adequate amount of sleep on a regular basis can throw your metabolism completely off balance. Studies have shown that a lack of proper rest will slow down your metabolism, meaning your body does not break down food as quickly as it should be resulting in increased fat deposit in different organs in your body.
In addition, sleep deprivation is also 30% responsible for the failure of fat cells to respond to insulin. These cells are responsible for removing the lipids and fats from the blood stream. With excess insulin in the body, the lipids and fats travel around the body and settle in different parts.
If you are suffering from sleep deprivation, it will be clearly visible on your face and you will experience issues with your skin. When we are asleep, the skin repairs any of its damaged cells. One study showed that skin recovery was 30% lower in individuals who had poor sleep compared to those who regularly slept for seven to nine hours in a night. Lack of proper sleep over a long period reduces collagen in your body, which causes your skin to sag, look older, and develop excess wrinkles. Your body produces collagen while you are fast asleep.
Furthermore, sleep deprivation upsets your hormonal balance by elevating the levels of estrogen in the blood stream. Your skin is more likely to break out due to the increased amounts of estrogen circulating in your blood stream.
One dangerous sign that you may not be receiving enough sleep is experiencing episodes of micro-sleep. This is when your brain forces you to doze off for a few seconds or minutes even though you could be engaging in an activity. The danger of micro-sleep is that you cannot predict when or where it will occur. You could be driving your car or handling heavy machinery and then you snooze off. Estimates indicate that about 2% of the total fatal crashes could be attributed to drowsy driving/ micro-sleep.
If you have noticed any of these signs, then it is time you improve on the quality and quantity of your sleep. As you endeavor to achieve this, invest in a quality mattress that makes you feel comfortable. Search your local mattress store or the internet for the best latex mattress available in order to enhance your sleep.