If You Don't Snooze, You Lose!

Once, twice, third times a charm, I finally decide to stop hitting snooze and slowly crawl out bed with puffy, half-shut eyes and a monstrous yawn. I brush my teeth and get dressed as fast as I can and then rush out of the house while counting down the minutes until I am late for class. Throughout the morning I am completely miserable and counting down the hours until I can get back into my bed. Unfortunately, this morning routine happens to me quite frequently.

Sleep is one of the few things in life that all humans practice and cannot live without. The body must have sleep to survive and properly function from day to day. When your body does not receive the amount of sleep it needs there are many adverse effects. Not only does sleep deprivation cause negative alertness, moodiness, and problems thinking, it can also interfere with your body’s biological “clock” which operates your hormone levels, body temperature and sleep. Getting any of these factors “off schedule” will not only make us feel groggy, but it can also cause harmful consequences to your body and possibly lead to physical or mental illness.

All of my family and friends know when I don’t get enough sleep, on a good day, I am just a little grumpy and quiet, on a bad day however, I am mean! It’s as if my filter is totally gone, I hate everything, I get emotional, and basically I am just awful to be around. I think most people experience these kinds of effects though, but what we don’t know is that this lack of sleep is not only affecting our moods, it is also hindering our health.

During the cycles of sleep, NREM and REM, our body is secreting many important hormones that affect growth, regulate energy, control metabolism and endocrine functions, and more. While you are sleeping your body is secreting growth hormones, hormones involved in reproduction and puberty, and lastly what many Americans need to know, hormones that influence appetite and weight! Of course there are other factors in our