Sleeping well obviously has its advantages (the most notable being staying awake during the day) — but did you know that sleeping too little has very harmful consequences? Fortunately, Dodow teaches you how to fall asleep and helps you save time. A little reminder of the main detractors of sleep deprivation and their effects, in case you are inclined to pull too many all-nighters.
Sleep better to lose weight better
When you sleep less, your body becomes a fat production and storage factory of which you are the first victim. Indeed, a study by the National Institute of Sleep and Vigilance reveals that short sleepers are more at risk than long sleepers of becoming obese (by 50% for men and 34% for women). Quickly:
- Your body decreases its leptin production
As a result, you may not even realize it, but you take larger portions and have more appetite for fatty, sugary foods and snacks at any time (your body is aware of its weakness and tries by all means to regain strength).
- Your metabolism is disrupted
It tolerates glucose less well, putting you at risk of type 2 diabetes. In the long term, if you sleep less than 6.5 hours per night, this tolerance can drop by up to 40%.
- Your body increases its cortisol level
It weakens the immune defenses and can cause high blood pressure, among other ailments.
Obesity is all the more dangerous as it triggers a vicious circle of poor sleep: air circulates less well in your throat and lungs due to excess fat, which can cause obstructive sleep apneas and micro-awakenings due to self-asphyxiation.
Jetlag
If you travel far often, jetlag is an old friend you may have tamed by force.
Also called circadian arrhythmia, this desynchronization occurs when you travel to another time zone and disrupt your biological clock — 3 out of 4 travelers say they suffer from jetlag. Flying north or south has little impact (the time doesn't change much), but trips become particularly challenging when you travel east to west... because they are longer!
From East to West, your plane goes against the winds (the jet-stream air current) and the Earth's rotation. Living in France, it's not just an impression if you went to China and it seemed less long than going to New York.
The drop in productivity and alertness
When you have slept poorly (or worse, not at all), the first thing you notice is that you are completely wiped out. After one or two cups of coffee, you might be under the illusion that everything is fine and that you can go about your business: hairdresser, kindergarten bus driver, professional chainsaw operator, carrier of the nuclear codes briefcase...
However, be careful not to act as if nothing is wrong, because everything is going badly, very badly, but you don't even realize it given the state you're in:
- You are more prone to mistakes and accidents
According to the National Sleep Foundation, sleeping less than 6 hours a night triples your risk of car accidents. And then you're just clumsy in general, which isn't great for your white shirt at soup time.
- You look less handsome and pleasant
A study in the journal SLEEP showed that short sleepers felt sadder and were judged less attractive. Your brain's emotional centers become 60% more reactive, and you take everything literally (there, I told you that you were less handsome and pleasant than usual and you get worked up like a flea, calm down, go take a nap).
- You are potentially less intelligent
Lack of sleep is also synonymous with loss of brain mass. Just one night of poor sleep is enough to detect molecules in the blood present to repair brain lesions, says the journal SLEEP.
- You remember nothing
During your deep slow-wave sleep (a phase of your sleep cycle), you consolidate your memory by recording the day's learning. If you skip it... well, you don't record anything at all. Plus, you're so tired that your concentration disappears.
Symptoms of poor sleep
By sleeping poorly, you make yourself more susceptible to all kinds of diseases, but some should make you jump out of your skin.
- Your risk of stroke is multiplied by 4
Short sleepers have twice the normal amount of calcium in their blood. More calcium means more chances for your arteries to clog. Strokes and heart attacks are on the agenda...
- Higher risk for cancers
You have more than a 50% chance of developing a colorectal adenoma (a tumor that can become malignant in the colon), breast cancer, and there is also a high general prevalence of cancers among people with sleep apnea.
- Gastrointestinal disorders, viral infections, headaches...
Your immune system weakens and you end up catching every germ that comes along.
- Beyond depression, the mortality rate increases
We don't wish it on you, but here it is, we don't want to hide the truth. You understand, with all these increased risks, many people reach the end of their story earlier than expected. According to a SLEEP study on more than 1,700 people over 10 to 14 years, men who sleep less than 6 hours per night suffer from an increased risk of mortality — even after adjusting for other factors such as diabetes and hypertension.
The side effects of sleeping pills
Faced with your insomnia, you might be tempted to take sleeping pills (although, if you're reading this, it's probably because you've already rejected medications).
There are many comprehensive studies on sleeping pills, so we will just highlight the key points to remember:
- Increases gastrointestinal reflux
- Increases mortality rate by 4 times
- 35% higher chance of getting cancer
- Worsens Alzheimer's disease
- Causes memory problems
- Increases driving accidents
- Risk of dependency
Hypnosis
Without sleeping pills, what to do?
Among natural methods of falling asleep, hypnosis is a technique used by therapists and sophrologists. Ericksonian hypnosis, based on the work of Milton Erickson, relies on cooperation between the doctor and the patient to bring them to a state of deep relaxation where they can unwind and find the solution to their problems.
Hypnosis is used notably for:
- Managing chronic pain
- Stopping smoking, snacking, nail biting, or any other habit that one can't get rid of
- Managing stress
- Managing insomnia
Ericksonian hypnosis can be particularly useful to help children fall asleep — the Dodow team explored the subject by writing Oda and the Wonderful Dodo, a hypnotic story to put little ones to sleep. Sleep is especially important for children, who do not yet have the same biological clock as adults and need more sleep time.
Be careful not to confuse therapeutic hypnosis with Houdini-style magic tricks. Sophrological hypnosis is part of a branch of psychological medicine that is scientifically verified (although still debated).
So, are you sure you want to keep procrastinating on that super important thing you were supposed to do, even if it means staying up all night?
We hope we made you change your mind! :)
On the same topic:
Sleep and children, a functioning very different from adults
Learn to meditate in 5 minutes!
Hypnosis to fall asleep on your own
