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How lack of sleep affects your health

We know lack of sleep can cause hunger.

There are several studies in which the participants are sent into a sleep deprivation chamber, and their diets are monitored while they lose sleep. For example, one study showed that adults deprived of REM (rapid eye movement) sleep for 96 hours ate twice as much, and those deprived of REM sleep for 12 hours ate 50% more than usual.

Lack of sleep affects your metabolism, causing problems like diabetes, obesity, and more. It can also make you more likely to get sick. Conversely, sleep is essential for your health and energy levels, so make sure to get enough.

Sleep deprivation has many severe effects on health, including:

Diabetes

Lack of sleep can increase your risk for Type 2 Diabetes, according to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism (JCEM). Researchers followed more than 1,400 people who were healthy when the study began. They found that after five years, the people who got less than 5 hours of sleep a night were 2.5 times more likely to have diabetes than those who slept seven or more hours. In addition, 82 percent of people with Type 2 Diabetes reported sleeping 6 hours per night or less.

Heart Disease

Lack of sleep may increase your risk for heart disease. Researchers in Sweden looked at the medical records of 3 million people. They found that those who slept just 6 hours a night had twice the risk of developing coronary artery disease as people who slept longer (Archives of Internal Medicine, 2009). Other research has found that people who don’t get enough sleep have a 30 to 40 percent increased risk of having a heart attack or stroke

Obesity

Strengthen and tone your muscles to burn more calories, prevent injuries or help ease old ones. The benefits of strength/resistance training are endlessLack of sleep may be linked with obesity. For example, a study in Psychosomatic Medicine found that people who slept less than 7 hours per night were 15 percent more likely to become obese over the next three years than those who got 7 to 8 hours of sleep a night.

Greater risk for other chronic diseases

Not sleeping enough may also increase your risk for cancer and cognitive decline, according to several studies.

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