Lack of sleep

A large number of people go through the ordeal of sleeplessness or lack of sleep. Insufficient sleep can give rise to a number of health related complications. Lack of sleep may be due to a stressful life or excessive anxiety. Lack of sleep may result in a number of maladies that can be a source of great discomfiture for individuals suffering from this problem.

1) Weakened glucose tolerance.
Due to insufficient sleep the central nervous system turns out to be more active which in turn hinders the pancreas from making enough insulin, the hormone that the body requires for glucose digestion.

2) Probable relation with obesity.
Growth hormone is generally produced in the initial stage of deep sleep. Men and women in their advancing years are less likely to indulge in the luxury of deep sleep that can lead to the lowering of the GH secretion. The production of growth hormone is hampered in people who suffer from lack of sleep at a younger age. This tends to trigger the fat-gaining process in them. Studies also indicate that insufficient sleep results in the lowering of the hormone testosterone also, which in turn makes it easier for the body to accumulate fat and lose muscle quite easily.

3) Enhanced carbohydrate yearning.
This can be attributed to the fact that the lack of sleep has an adverse impact on the production of a hormone called Leptin. This hormone performs the job of informing the body when it is full. However, when the production of this hormone suffers, the body will yearn for calories specifically in the form of carbohydrates even though there is no need for doing so.

4) Damaged immune system. Research shows that lack of sleep affects harmfully the white blood cell count in humans in addition to the body’s capability to combat infections.

6) Decreased attentiveness and capacity to concentrate

• People who are unable to sleep properly at night tend to be weary most of the time.
• Their tired state prevents them from concentrating properly and also diminishes their attentiveness.

7) Stiffening of the arteries.
Stress forced on the body because of lack of sleep causes an exceedingly sharp increase in cortisol levels. Such a discrepancy can result in the stiffening of the arteries, which can at times trigger a heart attack. Apart from this, exceedingly high levels of cortisol can give rise to muscle loss, augmented fat storage, damage to bone mass, depression, hypertension, and insulin resistance which is a malady in which the cells in the body loses the capability to accept insulin, and diminishes growth hormone and the production of testosterone.

8) Dejection and irritability.
Lack of sleep can also lead to reduction of neurotransmitters in the brain which are responsible for regulating mood. Because of this people who are denied sleep develop an inclination to get depressed quite easily.