Why we need to sleep
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Why we need to sleep
Sleep occurs throughout the animal kingdom and it is one of the oldest functions of the human body, yet we do not know a lot regarding why we need to sleep.
We do know that sleep is required for laying down memory, to save the body’s energy, to restore daytime mental function and for physical growth.
Sleep, however, is an active process and studies have shown increased activity of certain parts of our brain when we sleep when compared to wakefulness. Yet, during sleep our blood pressure, heart rate, breathing and body temperature decrease compared to wakefulness.
Lack of good sleep due to a sleep disorder or sleep deprivation can lead to a number of daytime consequences including excessive daytime sleepiness, tiredness and lethargy, morning headache, or neurocognitive dysfunction such as poor memory, anxiety and depression.
The type and duration of sleep we have changes during our lifetime. For example, a newborn child will sleep almost all day apart from when feeding or uncomfortable, and the type of sleep is quite different to adolescents and adults. As we get older we have less deep sleep (Slow Wave Sleep) and less Rapid Eye Movement sleep (the type of sleep when we usually dream).
Sleep Disorders Australia, and
the Australasian Sleep Association.
www.sleep.org.au
Sleep, however, is an active process and studies have shown increased activity of certain parts of our brain when we sleep when compared to wakefulness. Yet, during sleep our blood pressure, heart rate, breathing and body temperature decrease compared to wakefulness.
Lack of good sleep due to a sleep disorder or sleep deprivation can lead to a number of daytime consequences including excessive daytime sleepiness, tiredness and lethargy, morning headache, or neurocognitive dysfunction such as poor memory, anxiety and depression.
The type and duration of sleep we have changes during our lifetime. For example, a newborn child will sleep almost all day apart from when feeding or uncomfortable, and the type of sleep is quite different to adolescents and adults. As we get older we have less deep sleep (Slow Wave Sleep) and less Rapid Eye Movement sleep (the type of sleep when we usually dream).
Sleep Disorders Australia, and
the Australasian Sleep Association.
www.sleep.org.au
