If you ask me which department I really need to start buckling down with immediate effect, it would be my ‘sleep department’. I am chronically sleep deprived ever since my live-in helper went back to her country for good 3 years ago. Even when our live-in helper was around, I was already not getting sufficient sleep and with her leaving, I have since been piling more onto my already full-to-the-brim plate.
Next, you would be wondering how much sleep I get everyday. On good days, I get a maximum of 6 hours. On most days, I get 5 hours. Sometimes fewer hours. I know this is bad. I have already cut down on many non-necessity chores and I have no time to watch TV or to indulge in online games, unlike many of my friends who still have the luxury for these. I wonder how some full-time working mums and SAHMs can still find the time to watch TV and play online games. My social life is pretty pathetic and meeting friends is an occasional luxury that I get.
All I can say is that being chronically sleep deprived is damaging to my health. My tolerance and patience levels are very low, I snap at everyone quickly, especially my kids, I am grumpy, groggy, forgetful, foggy at times, emotional, have lowered stamina when I exercise every morning and I feel lethargic. Fortunately, I was introduced to Izumio hydrogen water and Super Lutein about 1.5 months ago to help ease my lethargy and strengthen my immune system. These products have given me back the energy and mental acuity that I need so much everyday so that I can function.
To be a full-time SAHM (stay at home mum) is tough already. But to juggle between being a SAHM and WFHM (work from home mum), it is akin to juggling 5 balls whilst walking on a tightrope hung 10 meters above ground! Every single day.
The average adult needs about seven to nine hours of sleep each night, according to the National Sleep Foundation, but most of us don’t even get that much. But getting too little sleep — generally understood to mean six hours or less a night, can be serious — enough to change your genes!
Of course, one night of short sleep won’t put you at serious risk, but one week can. After just seven nights of too little sleep, researchers observed more than 700 genetic changes that could play a role in consequences including heart problems and obesity, according to a recent study. OMG, I am petrified! And I am trying my level best to let go of some things just so I can get an hour extra of sleep each day.
Today, I want to share with you the scary effects of sleep deprivation.
Sleep deprivation can:
1) Lead to obesity
Too little sleep can spur some less-than-ideal food choices, including serving yourself larger portions, and a hankering for junk food, thanks to some complicated hormonal changes that occur when you don’t get sufficient shuteye. It seems that six hours of sleep or less bumps up production of the hunger hormone ghrelin and limits leptin, which helps you balance your food intake, according to a 2012 review of 18 studies of sleep and appetite
2) Up Diabetes risk
A pair of small studies from 2012 examined the link between poor sleep and insulin resistance, a telltale risk factor for diabetes. One found that among healthy teenagers, the shortest sleepers had the highest insulin resistance, meaning the body is not using insulin effectively, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. The second study examined fat cells, in particular, and found that cutting back on sleep increased insulin resistance in these cells, even when diet and calorie intake were restricted, Health.com reported.
3) Damage bones
At least in rats, long-term sleep deprivation seems to contribute to osteoporosis, according to a 2012 study. Researchers found changes to bone mineral density and bone marrow in the rodents when they were deprived of shuteye over a period of 72 days.
4) Increase Cancer risk
A small (but growing) body of research suggests that short and poor sleep can up risk for certain types of cancer. A 2010 study found that among 1,240 people screened for colorectal cancer, the 338 who were diagnosed were more likely to average fewer than six hours of sleep a night. Even after controlling for more traditional risk factors, polyps were more common in people who slept less, according to the study.
Getting just six hours of sleep a night has also been linked to an increase of recurrence in breast cancer patients. The study’s author has pointed to more and better sleep as a possible pathway of reducing risk and recurrence.
5) Hurt your heart
The stress and strain of too little sleep can cause the body to produce more of the chemicals and hormones that can lead to heart disease, according to 2011 research. The study found that people who slept for six hours or less each night and have problems staying asleep had a 48 percent higher risk of developing or dying from heart disease.
6) Kill sex drive
Sleep specialists say that sleep-deprived men and women report lower libidos and less interest in sex. Depleted energy, sleepiness, and increased tension may be largely to blame.
For men with sleep apnea, a respiratory problem that interrupts sleep, there may be another factor in the sexual slump. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism in 2002 suggests that many men with sleep apnea also have low testosterone levels. In the study, nearly half of the men who suffered from severe sleep apnea also secreted abnormally low levels of testosterone during the night.
7) Kill you
It’s not just heart problems that can lead to sleep-deprivation-related death. In fact, short sleepers seem to die younger of any cause than people who sleep about 6.5 to 7.5 hours a night, TIME reported. A 2010 study examined the impact of short sleep on mortality and found that men who slept for less than six hours of sleep a night were four times more likely to die over a 14-year period. The study’s authors called this link “a risk that has been underestimated.”
8) Age your skin
Most people have experienced sallow skin and puffy eyes after a few nights of missed sleep. But it turns out that chronic sleep loss can lead to lackluster skin, fine lines, and dark circles under the eyes.
When you don’t get enough sleep, your body releases more of the stress hormone cortisol. In excess amounts, cortisol can break down skin collagen, the protein that keeps skin smooth and elastic.
Sleep loss also causes the body to release too little human growth hormone. When we’re young, human growth hormone promotes growth. As we age, it helps increase muscle mass, thicken skin, and strengthen bones.
“It’s during deep sleep — what we call slow-wave sleep — that growth hormone is released,” says sleep expert Phil Gehrman, PhD. “It seems to be part of normal tissue repair — patching the wear and tear of the day.”
9) Make you forgetful
Trying to keep your memory sharp? Try getting plenty of sleep.
In 2009, American and French researchers determined that brain events called “sharp wave ripples” are responsible for consolidating memory. The ripples also transfer learned information from the hippocampus to the neocortex of the brain, where long-term memories are stored. Sharp wave ripples occur mostly during the deepest levels of sleep.
For more reading on Izumio and Super Lutein, please click on the following link:
Izumio Hydrogen Water and Super Lutein
Day 18 On Izumio Hydrogen Water For Incontinence
IZUMIO – Antioxidant Hydrogen Water
Cancer Patients Drinking Hydrogen-Rich Water
Dangers of Eczema Steroid Creams
I can be contacted at shireenyong@gmail.com.
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