7 Reasons We NEED a Good Nights Sleep

A good nights sleep fights heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and stroke

If I could go back a few years to my kindergarten self, there are a few things I would tell me. 🙂 Things like; “put the scissors DOWN – do NOT cut your bangs to the scalp”, “don’t wish your life away, it really does go by fast”, and “ENJOY YOUR NAPS”! The older I get the more I need my afternoon nap, but there’s noone insisting I lay still and listen to soothing music after lunch now. A good nights Sleep however, is just as important to my grown up body as it was “way back then”.

Did you know that sleep deprivation is directly related to many health issues we face today? Mama was right after all! I’ve been researching this matter of sleep for my teenager (he thinks sleep is “stupid – why would I sleep” ahhh), to show him just how vital a good nights sleep is! Here’s a few things I’ve found along the way:

Sleep deprivation decreases our concentration:

Try to stay up all night before an important meeting and see how that goes for you! The same thing is true for our kiddos. It’s impossible to give attention to detail when you are yawning every few minutes. The brain just doesn’t work that way! Our problem solving skills are greatly affected by a lack of sleep.

Lack of Sleep begs for germs to campout in your system:

Our body does much of it’s “recharging” while at rest. When we don’t give it the rest it needs, we are creating the perfect storm for illness. If our body is fighting to stay awake, it won’t be able to fight the germs that get spewed when someone sneezes in our direction.

Sleep affects our Glucose Levels:

There are numerous studies that tie pre-diabetes and diabetes type 2 to a lack of sleep. In as little as six days without proper sleep, our glucose numbers will tell on us! Not good for us mama’s of babies. If you find yourself up all hours of the night with a little one, do like all of the “older” mama’s tell you and SLEEP WHEN BABY SLEEPS!

Our Athletics can be affected by lack of sleep:

This is one I’m really stressing to my teenager (because he’s a sports loving guy right  now). If you want to succeed (at anything really) you MUST take care of your body – a good night’s rest is essential to our whole body health.

Poor sleep habits make us fat:

You knew this one would be in here! The sleepier we are, the more calories we consume. I know I’m more apt to grab a Snickers in the check out line to get an extra burst of energy. When we are sleepy we have a tendency to graze, and unfortunately that grazing is typically not on the healthiest choices available. 😉

We get Moody when we’re sleepy!

I really don’t think I even need to expound on this one! We can watch from the tiniest of tots as bedtime approaches. When we get sleepy we are more likely to snap and act out than we are when we are well rested.

Proper sleep patterns help us live longer:

Heart disease, diabetes, stroke, kidney disease and many other serious health conditions can all be affected immensely by our sleep. I’m learning more and more that my sleep is  not only important for me, but for future generations as well! I want to be a grandma someday waaaaaay down the road. I want to be the grandma that wears her grandkids out. Not the other way around. If I let my sleep go now, IF I’m around in 30 years, I will not be all that I could’ve been!

It’s estimated that 1 in 5 of us are using the WRONG mattress:

If you don’t believe me, sleep on the RIGHT mattress for a week and come back … your back will tell the story! My family travels often, after several nights away from my bed, my body starts protesting in profound proportions! Getting the right mattress is essential to a good nights sleep. Brooklyn Bedding has some exceptional options! That teenager of mine has been sleeping on his BB mattress for a few days now and (although he will NEVER admit it) he’s realizing how sleep deprived his body was.

Are you doing everything you can to protect the precious hours our bodies need to regenerate? Do you feel rested when you awake in the morning? Are your joints and back constantly aching? Do you catch yourself in the proverbial 3:00 slump everyday? Protect your sleep and make sure you are sleeping on the right mattress! Your body will thank you!