ZZZ . . .

Sleep is a very important aspect of our lives. Today’s fast-paced and high-tech society doesn’t put enough emphasis on a good night’s sleep, and it isn’t focused towards allowing people to get enough healthy, restful sleep. Heavy workloads, 24-hour services, television, and the internet all distract us from easily having enough sleep. Even so, sleep should not be neglected. Lack of sleep may adversely affect your health, and may even cause death in extreme situations. This section is going to enlighten you on some things about sleep and its effect on health.

                  First of all, sleep helps your body repair itself. Your body produces extra protein molecules during sleep, and this allows the body to repair itself and its immune system faster. Sleep can also help reduce stress (which will be elaborated on later), which in turn could also reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. Other positive effects of sleep include improved memory, as it allows your brain to better process new experiences and knowledge (which often get scrambled up and played back as dreams as this occurs). It also helps control body weight issues by regulating hormones that control your appetite, lowers the risk of diabetes, and reduces the occurrence of mood disorders. Sleep deprivation, whether or not it is induced by insomnia, on the other hand, can increase the risk of the above afflictions, and prolonged lack of sleep could result in hallucinations and possible death. The funny thing is, though, oversleeping is also linked to diabetes, as well as obesity. Hypersomnia is actually a medical condition.

                  As such, understanding proper sleeping habits is essential. As teenagers, you should sleep around 8-9 hours a day. It’s hard to achieve that with schoolwork, I know, but you can still try. Some things that can help with falling asleep include drinking warm milk, avoiding agitating things like coffee and chocolate, and taking a warm bath (just don’t fall asleep in the tub). Relaxing yourself also helps significantly. Just remember to get lots of sleep and rest, and relax yourself, and your health will improve a lot.

Sites used: Mainly this: http://www.better-sleep-better-life.com/index.html

(I may have confirmed a few facts on Wikipedia and other places, but anything pulled from there is also in this link.)