We as humans spend about 1/3 of our lives sleeping. But why? There are a few different views on why we sleep. Coming from an evolutionary point of view, we sleep solely to conserve energy for the next day and not get into danger. Back in the hunter-gatherer days, conserving energy was vital to survival when food was scarce. Another theory is that while we sleep we are actually improving mental functioning. A lack of sleep creates difficulties for problem solving and can affect your memory. A third theory is during sleep, our brain repairs old neurons and forms new ones. It gives our brains a rest period of sorts. And finally, a reason we sleep could be to get rid of unwanted/useless information.
Lack of sleep can lead to something called sleep debt (yes, that’s really what is it called). Adults are supposed to sleep 7-10 hours a night, but when you don’t get enough sleep for optimal functioning, sleep debt occurs. Common signs for sleep debt include:
- Feeling groggy when your alarm goes off
- Feeling drowsy in the afternoon
- Difficulty staying awake in class
Sound familiar? Lack of sleep is a serious issue, and it is more important than most people give it credit for. If we don’t get enough sleep night after night, we accumulate sleep debt. The side effects of sleep debt include:
- Lack of alertness- This can affect us in all realms of our lives. We won’t be as attentive in class, we may not notice important things around us, or even affect our driving. The last thing you want to do is fall asleep at the wheel.
- Lack of mental efficiency- This can cause us to not do as well in school, or perform to the best of our abilities.
- Increased risk for high blood pressure, diabetes, heart problems, and even weight gain.
- Make you more susceptible to getting sick, and more specifically, catching a cold.
- Finally, if you accumulate sleep debt over a lifetime, you can actually shorten your lifespan.
Sleep is something people take for granted. They put it off for other “important” things like cramming or watching T.V. Even though studying is very important, pulling an “all-nighter” is doing more harm than good. The lack of sleep you experience from staying up all night will cause you to not learn as easily, and have an adverse affect on your memory. If you must stay up late to study, make sure you’re also getting a sufficient amount of sleep.
Naps are also recommended. You should take a 30-40-minute nap: this improves your alertness and memory, but isn’t so long that it will make it harder to fall asleep later that night. You could try “planned napping,” which is when you take a nap earlier in the day you know you will have to stay up late, that way you don’t get tired as fast.
Sleeping is a very important biological function, and lack of it can have serious effects on our health and emotional state. Getting enough sleep should be something people put on their priority list, not on the back burner. Since it affects so much of our daily lives, shouldn’t we be making sure it’s to our benefit?
