According to the Sleep Foundation, 44 percent of adults 60 and older report symptoms of insomnia at least a few nights per week. Insomnia is defined as a sleep disorder where people have trouble falling or staying asleep. Its causes can be as simple as cutting back on caffeine or as complicated as changing medications to try and see if side effects are to blame.
Regardless of the cause, sleep quality tends to decrease as we age, but our need for seven to eight hours of sleep a night is still constant in our 60s as it was in our 20s. Getting less than that amount on a regular basis, and adverse effects on the body will start to develop.
Fulton Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing wants to detail five things that will suffer if you routinely don’t get enough sleep.
- Stress
Stress and sleep are components of a vicious cycle. The lack of sleep causes stress, and stress causes a lack of sleep. Scientifically, stress causes the body to release cortisol, which blocks the release of melatonin in your system at sleep time.
- Strength
Getting an adequate amount of sleep allows growth hormone to rebuild in your body. If that doesn’t happen as it should, you will have a hard time with both physical and mental exercises. It also affects your willpower.
- Eating
A lack of willpower means you may be susceptible to making poor choices when it comes to your diet. You may compensate with foods that are high in calories and carbs to give yourself an artificial boost.
- Immune System
Your immune system does not function as it should on a lack of sleep, making you more likely to catch a virus that you might normally be able to fight off.
- Heart
Heart cells and blood vessels repair themselves during sleep, and the body also gets a break by lowering heart rate and blood pressure. Without a good amount of sleep, these processes are unable to occur.
To learn more about Fulton Center for Rehabilitation and Nursing and all of the services they offer, visit https://centershealthcare.com/fulton_center/.
