IS SLEEP AFFECTING YOUR BODY?

We're told from a young age to ensure we get a good night's sleep, and not to stay up too late.  But as life, and schedules, get more complicated and busier, it's easy to forgo sleep time.

Unfortunately, a lack of sleep can affect more than just your energy levels.  Here's 5 reasons why you should ensure you are getting 7-9-hours sleep per night.

1) A LACK OF SLEEP CAN CAUSE WEIGHT GAIN

Not only does a lack of sleep affect hormone levels and energy levels, but it has been linked to obesity in children and adults - short sleep is one of the strongest risk factors.

2) SLEEP IS IMPORTANT TO HORMONAL FUNCTION

As women, we have complicated hormonal functions and with hormone levels fluctuating throughout life, the best thing we can do for ourselves is ensure we aren't compromising on adequate sleep.  A lack of sleep increases stress, and when it comes to stress, the body uses up more progesterone to manufacture the stress hormone cortisol and in turn leaves us with an excess of estrogen. Either way - high or low, estrogen imbalance can cause unnecessary havoc.

3) POOR SLEEP AFFECTS HEALTH & INFLAMMATION

Inflammation is linked to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, arthritis, and premature aging. Research indicates that people who get less sleep—six or fewer hours a night—have higher blood levels of inflammatory proteins than those who get more.

4) GOOD SLEEP IMPROVES ENERGY LEVELS & DESIRE TO BE ACTIVE

This one is a no-brainer and makes complete sense - yet we overlook it and forget that sometimes it isn't because of motivation we don't want to exercise... we are simply under-slept!  So - next time you are wanting to hit the gym, make sure you get a good night's sleep the night before.

5) SLEEP INCREASES ALERTNESS AND SHARPNESS

There's nothing like a lack of sleep to affect your alertness, awareness and mental health.  Depression is linked to a lack of sleep, and simple tasks like driving the kids to school require a sharp mental state at all times.  Needless to say, when you are lacking sleep all these things are affected, and could result in not only accidents, but also a lack of motivation to do anything, and an unhappiness in day-to-day tasks.