Impact of sleep deprivation on our body

Sleep is as important to the human body as good food and water, although most of us don’t consider it to be something so essential. As a consequence, we often suffer from insufficient sleep or disruptions to the sleep-wake cycle, which can cause the physiological state commonly known as fatigue. Fatigue could be considered a disease of the modern man.

Besides these obvious consequences, a lack of sleep can also affect a person's performance at work or at school. Sleep deprivation may also be linked to an increased risk of emotional problems such as depression, mania, or miscellaneous drug addiction problems.

Normal regulation of sleep: How does it work?

A normal sleep cycle is regulated by several brain structures, external stimuli, and various hormones produced by the hypothalamus, a part of the brain responsible for keeping you functional. One of the most important neurotransmitters involved is serotonin. There are three different processes controlled by our body during sleep regulation:

• A homeostatic process: This is a body’s need for sleep, simply in order to keep functioning normally. It is what is necessary for normal day activity.
• A circadian process: This process controls how much time each part of sleep will last, as well as the propensity of these periods
• An ultradian process: The purpose of this process is still not well known and remains uncertain.

There are two phases of sleep — a phase called REM (rapid eye movement) and a non- REM phase. Scientists believe that we dream in the first phase, but can rarely remember anything from that phase. Sleep proceeds in cycles of REM and non-REM phases. In humans, this cycle is approximately 90 to 110 minutes long. Each phase may have a distinct physiological function.

Sleep hormones

As mentioned above, some neurotransmitters or hormones are highly correlated with sleep and wake states. Melatonin levels are highest during the night, which is why it’s believed that this hormone may promote sleep. Another substance called Adenosine is gradually accumulated in the human brain during wakefulness, and decreased during sleep. It is considered to be a controller of wake/sleep periods.

Sleep and memory

Many scientists believe that memory depends on sleep; and that more sleep translates to better mnemonic abilities. Studies have shown that the REM phase of sleep helps the consolidation of memory, while non-REM sleep helps with the consolidation of declarative memories.

Some disagree and say that saving recent memory directly into long-term memory is a slow process; they propose that cerebral input is first saved in a temporary memory store, and then encoded and transferred into long-term memory during sleep. The fact is that it is not so important theory is correct for the purposes of recognizing the importance of sleep, because it’s certain that sleep does have a role to play in maintaining and consolidating memory.

Symptoms of sleep deprivation in adults

Some of the most common symptoms of sleep deprivation in adults include:

• Constant yawning
• Sleepy grogginess (sleep inertia)
• Poor concentration and mood changes (more irritable)
• Exhaustion, fatigue, and a lack of physical energy
• The tendency to doze off when not active for a while
• Grogginess when waking in the morning
• The tendency to emotionally explode even at the mildest provocation
• Moods constantly changing, resulting in pessimism, sadness, stress and anger

Symptoms of sleep deprivation in children

Sleep deprivation affects children in different ways then it does adults. No one really knows the reason why, but children tend to speed up, unlike adults who slow down, when deprived of sleep. Symptoms of sleep deprivation in children include:

• Frequently losing their temper 
• Frequent and short daytime naps
• Grogginess in the morning
• Moodiness and irritability
• Over-activity and hyperactive behavior

Causes of sleep deprivation

Common causes of sleep deprivation — which simply means insufficient sleep to the point where it affects your daily activities — include:

A matter of personal choice: Many people simply don’t realize that they need sleep. Instead of going to bed earlier and at roughly the same time every day, they prefer socializing, watching television, gaming, or doing anything else.

Illness: Several diseases such as colds and tonsillitis can cause snoring, gagging and frequent waking, and have a direct effect on sleep by fragmentation. There is also Morvan's syndrome, which causes people to go without sleep for several months at a time.

Working the night shift: One of the most common reasons why people don’t get enough sleep is work. People who do shift work and stay up during the night disrupt their sleep-wake cycles on a regular basis, which means finding a better rhythm becomes difficult after as well. 

Sleep disorder: There are several medical disorders capable of disrupting sleep on a regular basis. Some of the most common are sleep apnea, snoring, and periodic limb movement disorder. Insomnia, which simply means that someone cannot fall asleep or keeps waking up, is another common cause.

Medications: It is no secret that several different medications can affect how we sleep. Some of the most common “sleep-disrupting” medications are antiepileptic drugs and medications used to treat the attention deficit disorder (ADD).

Bad habits: Drinking coffee or smoking cigarettes close to bedtime stimulates the nervous system and makes sleep less likely.

Lack of sleep and daytime performance

In you activities during the day, the amount of sleep you have behind you could be crucial; even an hour or two less than normal, could leave a great impact. Two-hour sleep loss can have a major impact including:

• Reduced decision-making skills
• Poorer memory
• Reduced concentration
• Reduced alertness
• Shortened attention span
• Slower than normal reaction time
• Poorer judgment
• Reduced awareness of the environment and situation
• Reduced work efficiency

How much sleep is enough?

Different people need different numbers of sleep hours, depending on age, physical activity levels, general health and other individual factors.

In general:

• Primary school children need about 9 to 10 hours
• Teenagers need about nine to 10 hours also, because of specific lifestyle factors such as early school start times, etc.
• Adults need less sleep then kids; it should be about 8 hours, depending on individual factors. 

Read More: Sleep Problems? It May Indicate An Early Warning Sign Of Alzheimer's

Sleep suggestions

Here are some useful tips on getting more quality sleep hours!

• Avoid taking sleeping pills. They can only worsen things.
• Get up at the same time every morning, even after a bad night's sleep. 
• Avoid worrying, watching TV, reading scary books, and doing other things in bed besides sleeping and sex.
• Do not drink or eat anything caffeinated within six hours of bedtime.
• Purposefully go to bed earlier each night as early as you can, but not before you feel sleepy
• Don’t smoke or drink caffeinated beverages before bedtime
• Use relaxation techniques to help you fall asleep quickly.
• Seek professional assistance for sleep disorders such as snoring
• Avoid alcohol. It's relaxing, but can lead to insomnia when it clears your system.
• Spend time outdoors. People exposed to daylight or bright light therapy sleep better.