Why Sleep Matters: Boost Your Health and Happiness

Are you more of a night owl or a lark, late to bed or early to rise? No matter what time your alarm clock rings in the morning, the quality of your sleep matters. This is because many important processes take place in the body during sleep that are essential for our well-being.

Why do people sleep at all? What happens there? Could we simply sleep less to get more out of the day? Professor Matt Walker, a neurophysiologist at the University of California, has been studying questions like these. He published his findings in his book "Why we sleep" - and we have summarized the most important points for you in this article.

Good sleep, happy body

Immune system
If you don't get enough sleep, you don't just feel tired, you are tired - studies have shown, for example, that people are three times more likely to catch a cold if they sleep less than 7 hours. Cytokines play an important role in this: These proteins fight infections and inflammation and act as a kind of booster for your immune system. A sufficiently long and good night's sleep promotes their production and thus helps the body to fight off illnesses.

Heart health
While you sleep, your heart also rests: it beats more slowly, your blood pressure drops and your blood vessels can recover. So if you don't get enough sleep, the periods of high blood pressure are longer - this can increase the risk of heart disease. Good sleep also plays an important role in regulating cholesterol levels.

Body weight
You may be familiar with this: after a bad night's sleep, the display at the bakery looks particularly tempting. Sometimes you even get a real craving for sweets and high-energy snacks. One reason for this is leptin and ghrelin - two hormones that regulate feelings of hunger and satiety. The quality of our sleep influences and regulates them. That's why a good night's sleep of 7-8 hours can help you maintain a healthy body weight.

Metabolism
The bad news first: adults who sleep less than 5 hours a night have a higher risk of type 2 diabetes. And now the good news: high quality sleep can reduce this risk because it has a positive effect on insulin sensitivity and blood sugar levels.

How our night's sleep affects the psyche

Cognitive performance
Even the fastest brain needs to regenerate - and it conveniently does so while you sleep: During sleep, it excretes so-called neurotoxins. This "cleansing" is important so that you can concentrate optimally and work productively during the day. Various studies show that people who get 8 hours of sleep perform better at cognitive tasks than those who are sleep-deprived. Especially during REM sleep, the brain links thoughts and ideas together. This is also where the phenomenon comes from that we sometimes find the solution to a problem literally overnight. So if you are going through a stressful phase or are about to take an exam, it is particularly worth paying attention to the quality of your sleep.

Stress reduction
The brain not only cleanses itself of toxins overnight, but also processes emotions and reduces stress. This primarily happens during the REM and deep sleep phases. The neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine play a major role in this: when we sleep long and well, the brain is better able to keep these messenger substances at a stable level - which has also been shown to reduce symptoms of depression or anxiety. This works particularly effectively if you align your sleep rhythm with natural light cycles and avoid electronic screens for an hour before going to bed. Incidentally, a stable quality of sleep also makes us a little more optimistic and open to good feelings.

Social and emotional intelligence
We all know it: the more tired and unrested you are at the breakfast table or at work, the more awkward your interpersonal interactions will be. And a well-rested state actually improves our ability to interact socially - so when we sleep well, our relationships also benefit.

Slept badly? This could be the reason

• Alcohol or caffeine: Although alcohol can make you tired and relaxed, it also interrupts your sleep and therefore your recovery phases. Caffeine can also disrupt your sleep - especially that late afternoon cup of coffee.
  

• Blue light: One stumbling block on the way to healthy sleep is blue light, such as that emitted by cell phone, laptop or TV screens. There are apps that filter out blue light. Or you can treat yourself to glasses that block blue light.
  

• Stress: If you are stressed or suffer from a mental illness, this can also have a negative impact on your sleep quality. Relaxing techniques such as meditation, yoga or breathing exercises before going to bed will soon make a noticeable difference for you.
  

• Sleep rhythm: Irregular bedtimes affect the body's sleep-wake rhythm. You should therefore always go to bed at the same time if possible.
  

• Diet and exercise: Large meals or hard workouts before bedtime are often a cause of insomnia, so it's better to avoid them before going to sleep.
  

As you can see, sleep is very valuable for the body. While we rest, countless repair processes take place that we can support with good quality sleep. Find out what else you can do to sleep better here.

Want to find out more? Then we recommend the following content, for example:

• Andrew Huberman Podcast Series with Matt Walker: The Biology of Sleep and Your Unique Sleep Needs 
  
• Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams by Matthew Walker