You can make better choices to take care of your health
Short- and Long-Term Effects of Chronic Sleep Deprivation I cannot emphasize enough the importance of getting enough sleep since it is extremely difficult to change poor nutrition and lifestyle habits when you are sleep-deprived. For example, if you are sleep-deprived, you may start comfort eating. Comfort foods usually contain or are carbohydrates, and the more carbohydrates you eat, the more carbohydrates you will want. Alternatively, you may go completely in the opposite direction and not want to eat enough because eating makes you more tired. In both cases, you become malnourished. This makes it harder to sleep at night, and the cycle continues. Here is another example. When you are sleep-deprived and cannot afford to be tired during the day, you may try to raise your energy by consuming more stimulants. After consuming stimulants to stay awake during the day, you may find yorself consuming alcohol at night to fall asleep. Unfortunately, ingesting alcohol can both cause you to wake up in the middle of the night around 2 to 4 a.m. and make it harder to fall back to sleep. So when you get up in the morning, you are so tired that you start consuming stimulants again. It becomes a vicious cycle. Sleep deprivation also makes it difficult to start or stay on an exercise program. Finally, if you are sleep-deprived, you can forget about handling other stresses well. The bottom line is that one of the most important risk factors for accelerated aging that you have control over is getting enough quality sleep. The term "Beauty Sleep" is more than just words. You will feel more beautiful after a good night's rest because your body will rebuild during the night. Research shows that sleep-deprivation can lead to some or all of the following symptoms and/or disease states:
Short-Term Effects * Achy joints and/or sore muscles * Acne * Change in bowel habits--constipation or loose bowels * Fatigue * Hair loss * Headaches * Intestinal bloating (IBS) * Loss of memory and/or concentration * Mood disorder such as anxiety, irritablitity, being excessively weepy or disoriented * Weakness * Weight gain	Long-Term Effects: * Anxiety disorders, depression or psychosis * Cancers * Cholesterol abnormalities * Chronic fatigue syndrome * Fibromyalgia * Heart attacks * High blood pressure * Irritable bowel syndrome * Migra * Obesity * Osteoarthritis * Osteoporosis * Stroke * Type II diabetes * Ulcers
Health, LIfestyle and Social Situations that prevent good sleep: * Not eating enough of the right foods during the day * Not eating the right carbohydrates at dinner * Eating refined sugar * Drinking too many caffeinated beverages * Drinking alcohol in the evening * Using tobacco products * Stress * Power napping during the day * Diabetes	REMEMBER: Getting enough hours of sleep each night is important for keeping your hormones balanced. This will keep you regenerating efficiently, which in turn will keep your metabolism working at its optimum level. Make sure to put aside enough hours in the night to sleep--and have fun regenerating!!
Please visit our other Precision Fitness website for additional information about health, nutrition, physiology and exercise. pfitness.net	Reference: The Schwarzbein Principle II The Transition by Dr. Diana Schwarzbein, M.D.