An ongoing lack of sleep has been closely associated with hypertension, heart attacks and strokes, obesity, diabetes, depression and anxiety, decreased brain function, memory loss, weakened immune system, lower fertility rates and psychiatric disorders.
Sleep deficiency is linked to many chronic health problems, including heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, obesity, and depression. Sleep deficiency is also linked to a higher chance of injury in adults, teens, and children.
The primary signs of sleep deprivation include excessive daytime sleepiness and daytime impairment such as reduced concentration, slower thinking, and mood changes. Feeling extremely tired during the day is one of the hallmark symptoms of sleep deprivation.
“Sleep affects almost every tissue in our bodies,” says Dr. Michael Twery, a sleep expert at NIH. “It affects growth and stress hormones, our immune system, appetite, breathing, blood pressure and cardiovascular health.” Research shows that lack of sleep increases the risk for obesity, heart disease and infections.
What health conditions are linked to a lack of sleep? Adults who sleep less than 7 hours each night are more likely to say they have had health problems, including heart attack, asthma, and depression. Some of these health problems raise the risk for heart disease, heart attack, and stroke.
The longest time a human being has gone without sleep is 11 days and 25 minutes.
Sleep deprivation studies show that otherwise healthy people can experience increased anxiety and distress levels following poor sleep.
But if not getting enough sleep is a regular part of your routine, you may be at an increased risk for obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke, poor mental health, and even early death. Even one night of short sleep can affect you the next day.
Sleep duration has long been linked to the body's production of appetite-regulating hormones. Insufficient sleep is associated with higher levels of the hormone ghrelin, which increases appetite, and lower levels of the hormone leptin, which leads to feeling less full. This sets people up to gain weight.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) considers less than seven hours per night to be short sleep. View Source , which means for most people, six hours of sleep is not enough.
Sleep deprivation increases blood pressure, and high blood pressure is considered to be the leading risk factor for strokes. In addition, by contributing to plaque buildup in the arteries, insufficient sleep may make it easier for blockages to occur and cause mini-strokes or strokes.
It's not uncommon for people who sleep poorly to have joint pain - but why? Unfortunately, it's a vicious circle: sleep deprivation can cause achy; painful joints, according to a body of research that includes a study published in the April 2012 issue of Sleep journal.
The CDC reports that one in three Americans doesn't get the recommended seven to eight hours of sleep. Chronic sleep deprivation can raise your levels of anxiety, depression and negative thinking. “Repetitive negative thinking occurs when someone lingers on thoughts that are unhelpful,” said Dr. Marino.
Although not terribly common, lightheadedness can also be a consequence of sleep deprivation. Often, headaches and tension are found to increase after poor sleep; occasionally this may be accompanied by feelings of dizziness and light-headedness.
Insomnia - being unable to fall asleep and stay asleep. This is the most common sleep disorder.