How Your Physical Health Impacts Your Sleep

How Your Physical Health Impacts Your Sleep

Whether or not someone gets enough restorative sleep depends on their physical health. An individual may experience sleep deprivation due to physical or mental ailments. Likewise, the length and quality of a person’s sleep might be adversely affected by drugs and supplements they may take for medical conditions. While not getting enough sleep is a common cause of sleep deprivation, poor quality sleep can also contribute to this condition. If one’s sleep is of low quality, even eight hours a night can leave one feeling sleep deprived.

Even if a person wakes up throughout the night and doesn’t remember it, it usually leads to poor quality sleep. Multiple nighttime awakenings and poor sleep quality can result from sleep disorders such as periodic limb movement disorder and obstructive sleep apnea. The menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and the menopause can all cause hormonal changes that might disrupt a person’s ability to sleep well.

The Effects of Sleep Deprivation on Your Physical Health

Getting too little sleep can negatively affect one’s physical health because getting enough sleep is necessary for several body processes.

Lack of sleep over time can have a number of detrimental effects on one’s physical well-being. People who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to experience the following problems:

• Injury from car crashes and work accidents
• Heart attack and stroke
• High blood pressure
• Type 2 diabetes
• Reduced immunity and risk of infection
• Cancer
• Early death

Are You Getting Enough Sleep? Here’s How to Tell

Adults need to sleep for at least seven hours every night. A person’s physical and mental health seem to be impaired when they don’t get enough sleep, and they frequently feel exhausted during the day. Lack of sleep can cause symptoms such as:

• Feeling extremely tired during the day
• Mood changes, including increased stress, anxiety, or irritability
• Impaired thinking, memory, and judgment
• Reduced attention span

The Physical Benefits of Sleep

Lack of sleep can occasionally affect a person’s social and professional life. Due to fatigue, they could cut back on fun activities or discover that they are running behind on their obligations at work or home. A person may realize they have more energy to devote to their work, hobbies, and home life if they are able to get enough sleep again.