Sleep Hygiene
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Months ago, we started our series talking about sleep. This is because sleep is the foundation for living a healthy, happy, and high-performance life. Sleep is important for restoring energy levels, repairing tissues, regulating appetite, and improving mental clarity. Everything falls apart if you’re not sleeping properly. With many people back at work or school, at least for the time being, sleep is often put on the back burner as you’re getting used to a new schedule. However sleep should be prioritized now more than ever! Why? Because sleep is also so important for immune function.
Just like exercise, good nutrition, and other hygienic practices such as hand washing, sleep is a champion for fighting off illness and disease. Quality sleep decreases the risk of getting an infection, improves the body’s ability to fight the infection, and decreases the risk of developing chronic diseases associated with inflammation, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, type 2 diabetes, and certain cancers.
First, let’s talk about the basics of sleep. Throughout the night, you alternate between non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. NREM sleep is then further divided into stages 1, 2, 3, and 4. Stages 1 and 2 are considered light sleep, and stages 3 and 4 are deep sleep. These various sleep stages have different functions, and are all important for health and recovery. Deep sleep occurs more at the beginning of the night, whereas REM sleep occurs more at the end. One sleep cycle is approximately 90 minutes long and adults should get approximately 5 cycles (7.5 hours) of sleep each night for optimal health.
On average, 50% of your night should be taken up by light sleep, with deep sleep and REM sleep taking up the rest of the time equally. However, researchers have found that an infection increases the time and strength of deep sleep. So if you are sick or trying to fight off an illness, the length of time you spend in deep sleep increases. If you’re using our VIIVIO app or another wearable device to track your sleep, make sure you’re paying attention to the amount of time you spend in deep sleep. If you’re spending a lot of time in deep sleep it could be an indication that you’re trying to fight something off. So listen to your body and make sure you’re prioritizing rest and recovery!
Researchers have also discovered that there is an association between sleep and the effectiveness of certain vaccinations. This is because the body’s ability to recognize and store information regarding a virus, bacteria, or other pathogen occurs during sleep. So if you’re getting the flu shot this fall, make sure you get a good night’s sleep afterwards!
Bottom line: quality sleep is essential for strengthening your immune system, allowing your body to better fight off pathogens. A healthy immune system is important now more than ever. So do your body a favour and prioritize sleep!
What are we finding in the research?
It appears that the link between sleep and immune function is very similar to the link between sleep and memory.
Deep sleep is when we consolidate memories. This means that we take information and move it from one part of the brain to another, putting that piece of information from short-term to long-term storage. Then we can call upon this information when we need it.
The immune response occurs in a similar way! During deep sleep, information about a certain pathogen is transferred to our immune cells. The body’s immune system stores this information so that when it comes into contact with the pathogen later, it remembers it and can fight it off. This is why getting a good night’s sleep following a vaccination is so important!
Click out this extensive review article to learn more about this!
