Can a Healthy Immune System Help You Sleep Better
Posted by admin on May 7th, 2012 in Sleep Tips | 0 comments
We all know that our immune system is what we depend on to ward off sickness from viruses and diseases, but what part does it really play in our ability to sleep? Well actually this really isn’t all that interesting of a question and you might say its almost a trick question. When you are not well it usually means your immune system is really down and when you are not well its hard to sleep isn’t it? Who can sleep when they have stomach cramps from the flu or they are all stuffed up with a cold?
So naturally if your immune system is in tip top shape then you are less likely to be sick so of course you are going to sleep better. Now what will be intresting is asking the question do you really know what your immune system is all about? Perhaps if you understood it better then you would take extra steps to keeping in healthy and in return get better sleep. Now we are on to something that can be of value to you. If you are having problems sleeping then it will be worth you checking out our article on the immune system, but if its not a big deal then we won’t go into detail about it here. Remember this though that getting good sleep helps you to boost your immune system. So its really like being on a merry-go-round isn’t it.
Here is an excerpt from a article that shows that maybe getting enough sleep is going to help you ward off colds. With fewer colds then it means your sleep at least is not going to be affected by a stuffed up nose and a hacking cough.
“Can Better Sleep Mean Catching Fewer Colds?
Mother knows best — at least it appears that way when it comes to lack of sleep. It turns out that lack of sleep really may make us more prone to catching colds and the flu. And that includes the H1N1 virus.
“It is an old wives’ tale that if you don’t sleep well, you will get sick, and there is some experimental data that shows this is true,” says Diwakar Balachandran, MD, director of the Sleep Center at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston.
Some 50 million to 70 million American adults suffer from sleep disorders or the inability to stay awake and alert, according to the CDC. Though it’s not always easy to do, getting adequate sleep can help keep our immune systems primed for attack.
Sleep and Immunity: Understanding the Link
Not getting enough sleep has been linked to a laundry list of mental and physical health problems, including those that stem from an impaired immune system. Our immune system is designed to protect us from colds, flu, and other ailments, but when it is not functioning properly, it fails to do its job. The consequences can include more sick days.
The relationship between lack of sleep and our immune systems is not quite as straightforward as mom made it out to be, however. The immune system is pretty complex. It is made up of several types of cells and proteins that are charged with keeping foreign invaders such as colds or flu at bay…continue reading… http://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/excessive-sleepiness-10/immune-system-lack-of-sleep
Summary:
For people that suffer with sleep disorders my heart truly does go out to them. Minutes seem like hours during a sleepless night. It is depressing because you know you are exhausted and you know that about an hour before the alarm goes off you are going to fall asleep out of exhaustion. You may have an important meeting tomorrow and you are going to be like a zombie. Enough of these kinds of nights and there is no doubt you are not going to get that promotion you have been looking for. Aside from that if you drive a vehicle or operate machinery then sleep deprivation is just putting yourself in a position of an accident waiting to happen. So even though taking a close look at the immune system is not all that exciting, at least check out what you can do to keep it healthy.
