Health Effects of Not Getting Enough Sleep
Sleep isn’t a luxury—it’s vital to human health. However, many people tend to view a good night’s sleep as optional or unnecessary. People with busy schedules often sacrifice sleep to make time for other responsibilities. Of course, there are other reasons why one may not get enough sleep: insomnia, anxiety, or other conditions can also keep people up at night. Regardless of the reason, it’s important to find ways to improve your quality of sleep, which may include optimizing your bedroom for the best sleep possible. If you don’t, you may begin to experience these health effects of not getting enough sleep.
Lowered immune system
People who don’t get an adequate amount of quality sleep each night may find themselves getting sick far more frequently. During sleep, one’s immune system produces infection-fighting substances that combat bacteria and viruses. When you don’t get enough sleep, your body doesn’t produce as much of these protective substances and won’t have as much energy to fight off diseases. As such, people who don’t get enough sleep are more at risk for catching illnesses. Plus, they may also take longer to recover after catching an illness.
Increased risk for cardiovascular disease
In addition to short-term symptoms such as trouble focusing or moodiness, lack of sleep can also result in serious chronic health issues. Sleep is essential for keeping the heart and blood vessels healthy. Lack of sleep impairs the body’s ability to repair and heal blood vessels. If this lack of sleep occurs over an extended period of time, one’s risk for developing chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease increases.
Weight gain and heightened risk of diabetes
Another chronic health condition that can occur when one doesn’t get enough sleep is diabetes. When you don’t get an ample amount of sleep, your body may release greater levels of insulin after you eat. High levels of insulin—which controls blood sugar levels—heightens one’s risk of developing Type 2 diabetes. In addition, inadequate amounts of sleep may result in lowered levels of leptin and increased levels of ghrelin. Low leptin will impair your ability to tell if you’ve had enough to eat, and increased ghrelin will stimulate your appetite. As a result, weight gain is a common symptom of not getting enough sleep, which then further increases one’s risk of developing Type 2 diabetes.
