Why Poor Sleep Is Destroying Your Health

Poor sleep directly impacts your overall wellbeing. If your goal is improved health, getting better sleep should be your priority.

Without good, deep sleep, your body won’t function properly, which can lead to other health problems.

While there are plenty of tips for getting a good night’s sleep, nutrition is often forgotten. However, nutrition plays a critical role in getting quality sleep.

Vitamin And Mineral Deficiencies Are Linked To Poor Sleep

Your body needs a plethora of vitamins and minerals to function properly. And research has linked vitamin and mineral deficiencies to sleep problems. Over-production of vitamins has also been linked to sleep issues.

For example, both a deficiency and over-production of vitamin D have been linked to sleep problems. Too much vitamin D made test subjects feel sleepy during the day, which disrupted their sleep cycles that night.

A vitamin D deficiency was linked to test subjects getting under five hours of sleep per night.

It’s important to pay attention to everything you put into your body, either by eating it or absorbing it through your skin. Your body needs specific nutrients and will start to shut down if it doesn’t get those nutrients.

You may not realize it but even skincare products contain nutrients your body can use. Everything you rub into your skin is taken into your bloodstream and any nutrients will be processed just as if it were food.

There are even skincare products specifically formulated with the right minerals to give you a good night’s sleep and keep your skin healthy.

For instance, padina, spirulina, and hyaluronic acid are just three common skincare ingredients that work to keep you and your skin healthy.

Spirulina is rich in amino acids and is often taken as a supplement, but it has additional benefits when applied directly to your skin.

If you’ve already eliminated screen time before bed and have gone through the litany of advice online and you’re still feeling exhausted, it’s time to focus on nutrition.

You don’t want to allow your body to remain in a sleep-deprived state for any length of time. The longer you remain sleep-deprived, the higher your risk will be for developing serious health problems.

Sleep Deprivation Has Dire Consequences

When you think of sleep deprivation, you might picture an old horror film where the perpetrator tortures people by forcing them to stay awake for days on end. While that’s a form of sleep deprivation, there’s more.

Sleep deprivation is a state the body goes into when it doesn’t get enough quality sleep. An insomniac who doesn’t sleep for a week can be equally sleep-deprived as someone who sleeps 12 hours a night but is constantly interrupted and never finishes a sleep cycle.

According to the National Sleep Foundation, interrupted sleep disrupts your circadian rhythm and forces your body to restart all sleep stage cycles from the beginning. This often means not getting into the deep, restorative sleep stage known as REM (Rapid Eye Movement).

Some of the consequences of poor sleep include:

• Irritability;
• Foggy brain;
• Poor memory;
• Loss of balance;
• Weight gain;
• Weakened immunity;
• And high blood pressure.

Are You Taking Care Of Yourself?

One of the main reasons people don’t get enough sleep is because they don’t have time to take care of themselves.

If you’re working an 8-hour shift, that requires extra time to get ready, commute to work, drive home, and take a shower. By the time you’re done with dinner, there’s no time to work on personal projects unless you stay up late. And this means you’re not going to get enough sleep.

It’s time to start taking care of yourself. Even if your job is demanding and you don’t have any energy when you get home, you can change your routine to increase your energy levels. For example, eat dinner before you leave work and when you get home, go straight to bed.

If you generate a healthy sleep routine and stick to it for a while, you may find yourself able to get up a few hours early. With those early morning hours, you’ll have time to work on your projects, meditate, or go for a walk.

Avoid Poor Sleep By Improve Its Quality

If you’re trying to improve your mental, physical, and emotional wellbeing, consider improving your sleep. You should do this before jumping into a crazy fad diet or taking experimental supplements.

Once you get your sleep on track, you might not need to seek any other solutions.

You can avoid poor sleep by following these simple, yet effective tips:

1. Exercise regularly so you’ll get tired at night and fall asleep fast;
2. Avoid coffee, especially after 5 PM, so it won’t disrupt your sleeping cycle;
3. Also, alcohol and smoking should be avoided before you go to sleep;
4. Meditate a few minutes every evening to de-stress yourself;
5. Turn off your phone at night so you won’t get disturbed by any notification;
6. Use a cozy and comfortable mattress.

If needed, ask your doctor for more tips. Don’t be afraid, poor sleep and sleep deprivation are serious health issues and can contribute to more serious and even fatal diseases.