The world’s growing fascination with cellphones and other mobile devices has had plenty of negative effects. One of them is the habit of staying up late staring at the screen, no matter how early you have to wake up the next day.
That’s not the only cause of insomnia, of course. In fact, an estimated 40% of Americans will experience some type of insomnia at least once in their lives. Furthermore, about 10% of adults suffer from chronic insomnia in the US. Chronic insomnia disorder is characterized by episodes of insomnia that happens at least three times a week, for a period of three months or longer.
Whether you skip on sleep willingly or unwillingly, the result is the same. You miss out on a lot of the health benefits associated with a good night’s sleep. Benefits that can help you live a longer, healthier, and calmer life. Here are some of the benefits of sleeping well.
1 – Sleep improves your mood
One of the many positive effects of sleep is helping you calm down. It also gives your body time to bring your hormones into balance and maintain a lot of your systems. The result is that your mood will be more stable if you sleep well, allowing you to brush past daily irritations and making it easier for you to stay calm. On the other hand, insomnia has been linked to more erratic and aggressive behavior. Skipping sleep makes you way more likely to snap at your boss.
2 – Sleep reduces stress
A good night’s sleep helps reduce and regulate the volume of stress hormones in your bloodstream. That comes with a large number of health benefits, as stress is overall bad for you. For example, stress reduction is one of the reasons why sleeping well reduces your risk of developing heart conditions.
3 – Sleep helps regulate your appetite
One of the less expected effects of sleep is how it regulates your hunger. It won’t make you less hungry, but more sleep has been linked to a reduction in food cravings. No one knows why for sure, but not only does insomnia make you crave foods, it makes you crave high-calorie foods. It might be your body’s way of trying to get from food the energy you didn’t recharge while sleeping.
4 – Sleep boosts your immune system
During your sleep, your body produces proteins that help your body fight infections. As mentioned before, sleep also reduces stress, which has a direct effect on your immune system. Many of the hormones associated with stress also weaken your immune system.
That might sound counterproductive, but remember: stress is part of your body’s fight or flight response. It weakens your immune system in an attempt to free up energy and make you more ready to fight or run away, as both were often needed during our evolution.
5 – Sleep helps regulate anxiety
One of the results of sleep’s aforementioned hormonal regulation is that it helps you manage anxiety. A good night’s sleep can make the symptoms of anxiety much more manageable, while insomnia makes them worse. If anxiety has been keeping you awake as you worry about things, try drinking some CBD before you go to bed. Click here to learn more about it.
