Six hours of sleep daily is as important as the food you consume and the amount of exercise you do, in a day. Poor sleep can lead to reduced concentration the next day coupled with low productivity. Thus, it is necessary to get at least 6 to 8 hours of sleep daily.


Here are few benefits of getting the required amount of sleep every night:
Sleeping improves memory: Lack of sleep has negative effect on your brain, which affects your memory and retention. If you sleep more, you are more likely to retain things because in your sleep, your mind goes over everything you ve read when you were awake. This process is called consolidation. Thus, an optimum amount of sleep helps you retain whatever you have learnt during the day better.
Stimulates creativity: Getting sleep for the required number of hours is a necessity as your creativity levels are bound to soar after some good rest. Working relentlessly without a break in between can lead to saturation in your creativity levels. Thus, rest is a requisite for a spur of creativity.
Reduces stress levels: Not sleeping enough adds even more strain on your brain. Sleep deprivation increases stress, which adds to the blood pressure level and cholesterol in the blood, putting you at risks of suffering from coronary diseases. Thus, to keep your heart health intact, it is important to sleep for at least six hours, which is a minimum requirement for your body to rest.
Leads to weight loss: Sleep deprivation can lead to an alteration in your hormone levels, which activates the cortisol (a fat producing hormone), thereby, leading to obesity. It also leads to negative modifications in your diet and a lethargic approach to your regular exercise routine. Thus, the easiest hack to lose weight is to get adequate sleep at night.


Because the benefits you gain out of sleeping for a minimum of six hours are invaluable, you should aspire to give your body the rest it deserves.

Why You Should Sleep for 6 Hours Everyday?

Sleep is a vital component of the human construct. This is the time when the body restores  itself. While too little sleep can be dangerous for the body, new research has shown that too much sleep has its pitfalls too. Oversleeping is an indication of certain health risk. It also indicates few medical conditions that a person might have. Here is more on the risks of oversleeping:

Difficult to get pregnant: A study conducted by a Korean research team in the year 2013 found that out of a sample size of 650 women who were undergoing in-vitro fertilization, the ones who got pregnant had 7-8 hours of daily sleep. The study also suggested that sleep can affect menstrual cycles, circadian rhythms, and hormone secretion. While research is yet to find out a direct co-relation between sleep and infertility, a number of researchers are trying to break the jinx.
Risk of diabetes: A Quebec study conducted in 2013 clearly showed that a person who sleeps for more than eight hours in a day is more risk prone to suffer from type 2 diabetes and reduced glucose tolerance. On a six-period time frame, people who sleep for more than 7-8 hours, are more likely to suffer from diabetes related complication, even if they keep body mass under control.
Mental health and depression: Depression is a major symptom of oversleeping. While people with depression tend to suffer from insomnia, an estimated 15 percent patients suffering from depression tend to oversleep. Compared to regular sleepers, the ones who oversleep tend to suffer from anxiety symptoms and persistent depression. A recent study has revealed that sleeping too much can increase the chances of genetic heritability. Another study revealed that people who sleep for more than 10 hours can result in mental illness. Another research conducted at the John Hopkins Medical School revealed that an irregularity of the body s sleeping clock can lead to temporary mental depression.
Increased inflammation: Oversleeping can increase the risk of certain diseases such as the Alzheimer s disease, cardiovascular disease etc. A study conducted by a group of researchers revealed that women who slept for more than eight hours are likely to suffer from 44 percent higher C-reactive protein. Another study reported that C-reactive increased by more than 8 percent for every hour of additional sleep an individual takes.
More pain: While sleep and rest are often associated with healing, oversleeping can, at times, exacerbate symptoms. Spending too much time in bed can aggravate back and shoulder pain. Oversleeping is also associated with a higher frequency of headaches. Oversleeping often triggers one-sided migraine and increases the level of stress in a person.

Sleeping More Than 8 Hours - How It Can Put Your Health At Risk?

How sleeping less than 6 hours affects your health

After being awake for almost 14-16 hours, our body demands sleep. Minimum sleeping time required for a healthy mind and body is 7-8 hours. Although, this duration varies according to age. Because generally speaking, where a child can sleep for 12-14 hours, grownups can sleep for not more than 9 hours. Sound sleep is very essential otherwise, it can be harmful for our health. Let's see how sleeping for less than 6 hours affects our health.

1. Headache, weight gain and poor vision: When you sleep for less than 6 hours a day, it can not only give you headache all the time but can lead to a poor vision also. And if continued for a long time, may hamper your eyesight. The lesser you sleep the more weight you gain. And after-effects of gaining weight could be even more hazardous.

2. Memory loss, heart disease, infection:  Sleeplessness can have an adverse effect on one's memory too. A person may find it difficult to remember even simple things. Also, infections can take a longer time to heal because sleep is something that stabilises and balances everything that goes wrong while we are awake. If we don't get proper sleep, the process of healing takes longer. Lack of sleep can also elevate blood pressure which ultimately affects the heart.

3. Urine overproduction, stammering and accident: Sleeping slows down urinating process but when you are awake for longer hours, you might have to urinate more than usual. Lack of sleep can also make you stammer while speaking. If lack of sleep continues, you may not be able to communicate properly. When you do not have sound sleep, your mental condition would not be stable because of declining concentration. You can be accident prone if you drive in such a condition.

These are just a few of the ill effects. Sleeping for less than 5 hours is far more dangerous than you can even think. From behavioural to mental to physical effects, it can harm you in many more ways, So, have a sound sleep to avoid complications in life.




Did you know, Sleeping less than 6 hours can be fatal?

We're all guilty of making fun of snorers, but sometimes this snoring can be a symptom of sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is a condition where breathing is not continuous and may start and stop many times while asleep. This affects the quality of your sleep and in turn can affect many aspects of your health including your cardiovascular health. Here's how:

High blood pressure
When a sleep apnea patient's breathing stops, the oxygen levels in the blood also suddenly fall. This can increase your blood pressure. High blood pressure means that the heart muscles need to work harder to pump blood through the body.

Cardiomyopathy
As a result of high blood pressure, the heart walls may become thicker and the heart muscles become stiffer. This is known as cardiomyopathy. As this condition worsens, the heart becomes weaker and is unable to maintain a regular rhythm. This can eventually lead to heart failure.

Arrhythmia
An irregular heartbeat is also known as arrhythmia. This may also be related to the changes in the heart's structure that follow the drop in blood oxygen levels. In many cases, arrhythmia has no visible symptoms and can often go undiagnosed. This can result in the formation of blood clots in the atria which can lead to a stroke.

Sleep apnea is easy to diagnose. If the doctor feels that you show symptoms of sleep apnea, you may be asked to stay on the hospital overnight and undergo a sleep evaluation. This tests a variety of body functions including brain activity, eye movements, heart rate, breathing patterns and blood oxygen levels.

Treatment for sleep apnea depends on the causes for this condition. If you are overweight, regular exercise and a change in diet can help you lose the excess weight and cure sleep apnea. Similarly, if your sleep apnea is triggered by an allergy, treating the allergy can help cure the sleep apnea. Other forms of treatment for sleep apnea may include:

Continuous positive airway pressure (cpap)
This is a machine which pumps air into the body through a nasal mask. By keeping the pressure in the machine higher than normal air pressure the upper airway passages are kept open and hence the quality of your sleep is improved. An auto cpap machine can modulate the air pressure such that it is higher when you inhale and lower when you exhale.;

Oral devices
Your doctor may suggest oral devices that allow you to keep your mouth open while you sleep. This is easier to use than cpap machine but less effective. Surgery is the last resort when it comes to treatment for sleep apnea.

Sleep Apnea and Its Link to Heart Failure

What is the best time to sleep?
This is one of those questions which bother many and sundry. Considering the different sleep schedules which different people might develop as a result of their work or other reasons, the correct answer is roughly around 10 p. M. It is good to follow a proper sleeping schedule so that you go to bed and wake up at the same time almost every single day. The body's internal clock or the circadian rhythm is linked to the cycle of the sun. Technically, it is better to wake up with the sun as it has a number of benefits for the human body.

The quality of sleep is known to be influenced by how late you retire for the night. The quality of rem (rapid eye movement) sleep tends to decrease if you go to sleep late. There is another type of sleep which is known as non rem sleep; this is a deeper state of sleep. The non rem sleep helps in revitalizing the body and leaves you energized once you wake up. Sleeping late at night is linked to higher levels of rem sleep, which might not be very beneficial for your physical or mental health.

If you go to bed late at night, you will experience more of the lighter rem sleep. This may lead to fatigue and restlessness the following day. It is also been shown that going to bed late and sleeping less than the usual eight hours is linked with problems in blood sugar levels and decline in cognitive function. It also raises your risks of high blood pressure.

Exposure to radiation from your cellphones or the glare from your computer screen before going to sleep may also affect the quantity and quality of your sleep. Make sure you eat a light dinner consisting of salads. Eating a heavy dinner before going to bed may cause digestive problems, thus impairing your sleep. Also make sure to exercise on a regular basis as it releases various hormones in the body that help in improving your overall wellbeing.

Just What Is the Best Time to Go to Sleep?

A good night's sleep is very essential for the body and mind to recharge and be ready to function to its full extent each day. Though, the constant change in lifestyle has altered the fixed sleep hours, it is still advisable that for a healthy lifestyle, 7 to 8 hours of sound sleep is essential.

Studies reveal that about 60% of the UK population is sleep deprived, getting 6 or less hours of sleep. Further, studies have shown that there is a good correlation between a person's food habits and the sleep pattern. While some foods are good at inducing sleep, there are others which help you reduce fatigue that sleeplessness brings in.

The following is a list of foods along with their most significant benefits:

Cherries: Cherries contain Melatonin which controls our biological clock and is often used to combat jetlag. Melatonin improves duration and quality of sleep.
Bananas: Bananas are loaded with Potassium and Magnesium, which are very good for cardiovascular health and cognitive functioning and are believed to induce peaceful sleep.
Mangoes: Mangoes help by boosting the immune system and provide a good night's sleep.
Blueberries: Blueberries are believed to reduce oxidative stress and muscle cell inflammation and are an excellent choice of snack for lack of sleep. Blueberries balance the level of blood sugar and stabilize the hormone of satiety, Leptin, thus, inducing better sleep.
Milk: A glass of warm milk induces sleep. Add a pinch of cinnamon and see yourself sleep even better. Scientists believe that Tryptophan and Serotonin do the magic. Not just milk, even other dairy products such as cheese can improve your sleep.
Fish: Salmon, Sardines, and Tuna are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids and also contain vitamin B6. All these are believed to improve cognitive state and are believed to induce a restful sleep.
Nuts: Be it walnuts, pecans or cashews, all nuts have a soothing effect. They are a rich source of Tryptophan, which is an amino acid responsible for sleep. They release Melatonin and Serotonin which regulate the biological clock and manage sleep patterns.
Herbal tea: For instance, Chamomile tea and Valerian tea act as a mild sedative and encourage a healthy sleep. The whole act of brewing the tea with the aroma wafting through the air is believed to promote a soothing effect too. Green tea is also considered as a god sleep inducing agent.

8 Great Things To Eat For People Suffering From Poor Sleep

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