Deprivation on Your
Body
Written by Ann Pietrangelo and Stephanie Watson
Medically Reviewed by Deborah Weatherspoon, PhD, RN, CRNA on June 5, 2017
accidents
mood changes
high blood pressure
weight gain
Your body needs sleep, just as it needs air and food to function at its best.
During sleep, your body heals itself and restores its chemical balance.
Your brain forges new connections and helps memory retention. Without
enough sleep, your brain and body systems wont function normally. It can
also dramatically lower your quality of life. A review of 16 studies found
that sleeping for less than 6 to 8 hours a night increases the risk of early
death by about 12 percent.The obvious signs of sleep deprivation are:
excessive sleepiness
yawning
irritability
daytime fatigue
Stimulants like caffeine arent enough to override your bodys profound
need for sleep. Behind the scenes, chronic sleep deprivation can interfere
with your bodys internal systems and cause more than just the initial signs
and symptoms listed above. Read on to learn exactly how sleep
deprivation affects specific body functions and systems.
Immune system
While you sleep, your immune system produces protective, infection-
fighting substances like cytokines. It uses these substances to combat
foreign invaders such as bacteria and viruses. Cytokines also help you
sleep, giving your immune system more energy to defend your body
against illness.Sleep deprivation prevents your immune system from
building up its forces. If you dont get enough sleep, your body may not be
able to fend off invaders. It may also take you longer to recover from
illness. Long-term sleep deprivation also increases your risk for chronic
illnesses like diabetes and heart disease.
Respiratory system
The relationship between sleep and the respiratory system goes both ways.
A nighttime breathing disorder called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) can
interrupt your sleep and lower the quality of your sleep. As you wake up
throughout the night, this can cause sleep deprivation, which leaves you
more vulnerable to respiratory infections like the common cold and flu.
Sleep deprivation can also make existing respiratory diseases worse, such
as chronic lung illness.
Digestive system
Along with eating too much and not exercising, sleep deprivation is
another risk factor for becoming overweight and obesity. Sleep affects the
levels of two hormones, leptin and ghrelin, which control feelings of
hunger and fullness.Leptin tells your brain that youve had enough to eat.
Without enough sleep, your brain reduces leptin and raises ghrelin, which
is an appetite stimulant. The flux of these hormones could explain
nighttime snacking or why someone may overeat later in night. A lack of
sleep can also contribute to weight gain by making you feel too tired to
exercise.Sleep deprivation also prompts your body to release higher levels
of insulin after you eat. Insulin controls your blood sugar level. Higher
insulin levels promote fat storage and increase your risk for type 2
diabetes.
Cardiovascular system
Sleep affects processes that keep your heart and blood vessels healthy,
including your blood sugar, blood pressure, and inflammation levels. It
also plays a vital role in your bodys ability to heal and repair the blood
vessels and heart.People who dont sleep enough are more likely to get
cardiovascular disease. One analysis published in the European Journal of
Preventive Oncology linked insomnia to an increased risk of heart
attack and stroke.
Endocrine system
Hormone production is dependent on your sleep. For testosterone
production, you need at least three hours of uninterrupted sleep, which is
about the time of your first REM episode. Waking up throughout the night
could affect hormone production.This interruption can also affect growth
hormone production, especially in children and adolescents. These
hormones help build muscle mass and repair cells and tissues.
The pituitary gland releases growth hormones continuously, but sleep and
exercise also help induce the release of this hormone.
.
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Second, during the night, various sleep cycles play a role in consolidating memories in the
mind. If you dont get enough sleep, you wont be able to remember what you learned and
experienced during the day.
Heart disease
Heart attack
Heart failure
Irregular heartbeat
High blood pressure
Stroke
Diabetes
According to some estimates, 90% of people with insomnia -- a sleep disorder characterized
by trouble falling and staying asleep -- also have another health condition.
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Most of us are caffeine-fueled and plagued by a 24/7 society where were constantly plugged-in,
overworked, and stressed. These daily habits take a toll on the body and impair its ability to adequately
function for maximum health and optimal performance, especially since they contribute to poor sleep.
While one night of short sleep wont jeopardize your health, long-term sleeping problems can have
dangerous, even fatal, effects on your overall health and wellness.
https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/features/10-results-sleep-loss#1
..
When an individual does not get enough sleep to feel awake and alert, they begin to experience symptoms of
sleep deprivation.
Fast facts on sleep deprivation
Here are some key points about sleep deprivation. More detail and supporting
information is in the main article.
Around 59% of Americans get 7 or more hours of sleep at night, while 40%
get less than 7 hours
A person who has gone for even one night without sleep is as impaired as a
legally intoxicated individual
Sleep loss alters normal functioning of attention and disrupts the ability to
focus on environmental sensory input
Sleeping less than 5 hours a night increases the risk of death from all causes
by 15%
Children and young adults are most vulnerable to the negative effects of
sleep deprivation
When you fail to get your required amount of sufficient sleep, you start to
accumulate a sleep debt
Sleep deprivation and sleep disorders are estimated to cost the US over
$100 billion annually in lost productivity, medical expenses, sick leave and
property damage.
After around 16 hours of staying awake, the body attempts to balance the
need for sleep. If sleep is thwarted, the brain obtains sleep through short
sleep attacks (microsleeps). This is an uncontrollable brain response that
renders a person unable to process environmental stimulation and sensory
information for a brief amount of time.
A person's eyes often remain open during microsleeps, but they are
essentially "zoned out." As the nature of these attacks is sudden, for a
sleep-deprived individual operating heavy machinery or driving, the
consequences can be catastrophic to both the individual, as well as
innocent bystanders.
Microsleeps will continue to occur despite an individual's forced attempt to
stay awake, and because of this inbuilt sleep mechanism, it is extremely
difficult for an individual to remain awake for more than 48 hours straight.
Learn more about why we sleep, including what happens to the body
during sleep.
References : https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/307334.php
What Is Sleep Deprivation? An introduction to Sleep
Debt
Its now believed that people who experience short-term sleep restriction are not
able to process glucose as efficiently as those who get eight hours of sleep; which
means that they have an increased likelihood of developing Type 2 Diabetes. A
study of more than 1400 participants conducted in 2005 showed that people
who habitually slept for only a few hours were more prone to experience
symptoms of Type 2 Diabetes.
Healing
In the year 2005, a study was conducted on a group of rats: for five days the rats
were deprived of REM sleep and, compared to a group of rats which
were not deprived of dream sleep, the results showed no significant changes in
their wound-healing ability. These rats were allowed NREM (deep) sleep.
The Brain
We now know that sleep deprivation adversely affects the brain and cognitive
function. A study completed by the Veterans Affairs Healthcare System in San
Diego and the UCSD School of Medicine in the year 2000 monitored activity in the
brains of sleep-deprived people whilst they performed basic verbal learning
tasks by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI).
Growth
Besides the many physical consequences of insufficient sleep, perhaps the most
important consequences of sleep deprivation are deficits in working memory and
attention. Lapses in ordinary mundane routines can cause worrying results; from
missing words or sentences while taking notes to omitting important ingredients
while cooking. It appears that carrying out tasks that require attention is in direct
correlation to the number of hours the person sleeps each night; with these
functions declining with the number hours of sleep deprivation. Methods such
as choice-reaction time tasks are used to test working memory. Sadly, these
attentional lapses can move into critical domains whereby the consequences
could well result in life or death: industrial accidents and car crashes can be the
result of inattentiveness, directly attributable to sleep deprivation.
Depression
Interestingly, there have been studies that show sleep restriction might have
potential when it comes to treating depression. We know that people suffering
from depression experience earlier incidences of REM sleep plus increased rapid
eye movements; and monitoring a patients EEG and waking them during bouts
of REM sleep appears to produce a therapeutic effect, thus alleviating symptoms
of depression. When sleep deprived, up to 60% of patients show signs of
immediate recovery; however, most relapse the next night. Its believed that this
effect is linked to increases in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). Its
also been shown that, in normal people, chronotype is related to the effect that
sleep deprivation has on mood: following sleep deprivation, people who prefer
mornings become more depressed, while those who prefer evenings show a
marked improvement in their mood.
When rats were exposed to prolonged sleep deprivation the result was that both
food intake and energy expenditure increased, resulting in a net weight loss, and
ultimately leading to death. The hypothesis of this study is that when moderate
chronic sleep debt goes hand-in-hand with habitual short sleep, energy
expenditure and increased appetite are encouraged; and, in societies where high-
calorie food is freely available the equation is tipped towards food intake rather
than expenditure. Nationally representative samples used in several large studies
suggest that one of the causes of the United States obesity problem could
possibly be due to the corresponding decrease in the average number of hours
that people sleep.
obesity and sleep
These findings indicate that the hormones that regulate appetite and glucose
metabolism could be disrupted because of sleep deprivation. It appears that the
association between obesity and sleep deprivation is strongest in young and
middle-age adults. On the other hand, there are scientists who believe that
related problems, such as sleep apnea, together with the physical discomfort of
obesity, reduce a persons likelihood of getting a good nights sleep.
References : https://www.sleepassociation.org/sleep/sleep-deprivation/