Sleep is one of the things that the human body does that is still shrouded in mystery.
While it is has always been known that sleep is important, it is only recently though the use of advanced brain scanning and research methods have we began to understand just how important sleep is to the human body and mind.
By understanding exactly why sleep is necessary it becomes even more clear that humans need to get as much sleep as their body tells them to take.
Memory and Learning While sleeping the brain is able to process information that was taken in during the day.
With all of the senses nearly shut down, the brain can focus on building memory and connecting pieces of information without being distracted.
This process, known as memory consolidation, is how the brain is able to retain bits of information and make seemingly unrelated connections come together in a logical form.
Mood Sleep is a necessity just like food and water.
When you do not get enough food, your body responds by making you feel hungry.
At first you can deal with it, but as time goes by the hunger grows and your brain keeps sending stronger and stronger signals that you need to eat.
Eventually these signals begin to become painful, which causes irritation and has a major impact on mood and decision making.
Just like hunger, sleep deprivation will quickly grow from a minor irritation to a major annoyance if not rectified.
The body knows how much sleep it needs and when deprived of that amount will begin sending out ever increasing signals to the body trying to get it to lay down and get some rest.
As people fight these sleep urges in order to continue working or playing, the body will be trying to do the opposite, and people will become irritable and have a hard time concentrating.
Safety As the body tries to tell you to sleep, you begin to lose focus.
It becomes harder to pay attention to what you are working on and the brain will have a tendency to drift off to other distractions more easily.
This lack of focus will continue to get worse the longer the person goes without sleep and will eventually reach a critical level.
Even more frightening is when sleep become uncontrollable.
Sooner or later the body becomes so tired that sleep is no longer voluntary, the brain will begin switching over to sleep mode off and on while the person is still standing, working, driving, etc.
These sudden bursts of sleep will get longer and longer and put the person in extreme danger.
Sleep is Necessary Sleep is not an option.
It is something that everyone has to do and the ideal way to do it is to get several hours of continuous deep sleep.
The longer that a person goes without sleep the stronger the urge that the body will send to get the person to lay down.
If these urges are ignored for long enough the person will begin to lose focus and will put themselves in danger, particularly if doing something like driving a car.
While it is has always been known that sleep is important, it is only recently though the use of advanced brain scanning and research methods have we began to understand just how important sleep is to the human body and mind.
By understanding exactly why sleep is necessary it becomes even more clear that humans need to get as much sleep as their body tells them to take.
Memory and Learning While sleeping the brain is able to process information that was taken in during the day.
With all of the senses nearly shut down, the brain can focus on building memory and connecting pieces of information without being distracted.
This process, known as memory consolidation, is how the brain is able to retain bits of information and make seemingly unrelated connections come together in a logical form.
Mood Sleep is a necessity just like food and water.
When you do not get enough food, your body responds by making you feel hungry.
At first you can deal with it, but as time goes by the hunger grows and your brain keeps sending stronger and stronger signals that you need to eat.
Eventually these signals begin to become painful, which causes irritation and has a major impact on mood and decision making.
Just like hunger, sleep deprivation will quickly grow from a minor irritation to a major annoyance if not rectified.
The body knows how much sleep it needs and when deprived of that amount will begin sending out ever increasing signals to the body trying to get it to lay down and get some rest.
As people fight these sleep urges in order to continue working or playing, the body will be trying to do the opposite, and people will become irritable and have a hard time concentrating.
Safety As the body tries to tell you to sleep, you begin to lose focus.
It becomes harder to pay attention to what you are working on and the brain will have a tendency to drift off to other distractions more easily.
This lack of focus will continue to get worse the longer the person goes without sleep and will eventually reach a critical level.
Even more frightening is when sleep become uncontrollable.
Sooner or later the body becomes so tired that sleep is no longer voluntary, the brain will begin switching over to sleep mode off and on while the person is still standing, working, driving, etc.
These sudden bursts of sleep will get longer and longer and put the person in extreme danger.
Sleep is Necessary Sleep is not an option.
It is something that everyone has to do and the ideal way to do it is to get several hours of continuous deep sleep.
The longer that a person goes without sleep the stronger the urge that the body will send to get the person to lay down.
If these urges are ignored for long enough the person will begin to lose focus and will put themselves in danger, particularly if doing something like driving a car.