Why do we need to sleep?—Perhaps this question has already crossed our minds, but we never find the right answer. Maybe you have searched on Google, but you have forgotten the answers. However, I would like to ask you another question before we dive into the answer to the first question.
When did you last get enough sleep? Enough sleep to wake up without an alarm clock and stay awake without a cup of Americano. When did that happen?
These answers actually lead to the first question of why humans need sleep. It is now common knowledge that two thirds of adults in developed countries do not get the recommended amount of sleep each night. However, this fact can have serious consequences for humans because we need enough sleep.
Matthew Walker, an author of the book entitled “Why We Sleep” stated that insufficient sleep can cause several serious problems such as demolishing the immune system – probably to double the risk of cancer, a lifestyle factor that leads to Alzheimer’s disease, disrupts blood sugar lever, and even increase the blocking of coronary arteries. So can you find the answers?
If the above problems still don’t frighten you, Matthew also states that people who don’t get any sleep at all for several months will lose basic brain and body functions, leading to death. So if we never sleep, do we die?
Yes, obviously. The reasons up to two cases, such as the loss of body and basic brain functions, and then the probability of dying because of a car accident due to the fatigue-related error while driving. Does this not frighten you?
How is this possible? Matthew explains in his book that sleep enriches many functions in the human brain. It affects the ability to learn, to remember and to make logical decisions. Sleep also enables us to face the social and psychological challenges of the next day with a cool head.
Coming down to the body, sleep helps our body to replenish the ammunition of our immune system. It also restores the metabolic state by balancing insulin and glucose circulation. For some of you on a diet program, sleep can control appetite, making it easier to choose healthy food instead of impulsively eating junk food.
So instead of asking why humans need to sleep, we should ask: “Is there any benefit to not sleeping?”
And yet you know exactly what the answer is. Most scientific studies assure us that the answer is no. There is no answer. On the contrary, sleep is the most effective way to reset the health of your brain and body every day. So I am pretty sure, and Matthew backs me up, that humans really do need to sleep. When the night comes, instead of binge-watching Netflix, it’s better to pull off your blanket and go to dreamland. PRS.
