6 Surprising Health Benefits of Sleep

If you don’t get enough sleep you are more likely to develop certain diseases, worsen existing ones and be more irascible and exhausted the next day. 

Unfortunately, “during a pandemic such as Covid-19, there’s a potential to induce or exacerbate many sleep issues,” Dr. Matthew Schmitt, a doctor of sleep medicine at Piedmont Healthcare in Georgia, told CNN. “A lack of quality sleep not only affects how we feel during the daytime but can also impair our immune system function, which is vital in protecting us from common viral illnesses.”

According to medical experts, getting enough sleep can improve your quality of life and health and prevent some diseases, such as diabetes, cancer and other diseases of the immune system. But, according to a recent study done by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), one in three American adults aren’t getting enough sleep. Of course, the reasons can range from having unhealthy habits, such as drinking large amounts of coffee, partying every day or checking social media, to following an unhealthy diet.

“All of these things are really interconnected in terms of their function. All of them are connected to the body clock. The body is like an orchestra where there’s an orchestra leader that’s sort of the main timer, but everybody else is playing it together and they’re optimizing what they are doing,” said Dr. Meir Kryger, a professor of pulmonary medicine and a clinical professor of nursing at Yale School of Medicine in Connecticut.

So, here are some surprising health benefits of sleep. Read on for more info!