Clipping of news on Brazilian Culture, Law and Citizenship
05/04/2016
This article was translated by an automatic translation system, and was therefore not reviewed by people.
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Sleeping well is essential to physical and mental health; know what are the risks associated with sleepless nights.
Men sleep on the sofa in a Tokyo shop (Photo: Thomas Peter / Reuters)
Experts confirm: sleep less and less.
"The sleep problems constitute a global epidemic that threatens the health and quality of life of more than 45 percent of the world population," says the World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM, its acronym in English).
"Sleep well is one of the three fundamental pillars of good health, along with a balanced diet and regular exercise," full membership in the information note.
Shirley Cramer, executive director of Public Health of the Royal Society of Spain, many say sleep four to five hours a day, but this is not something to brag about.
Cramer says that lack of sleep has highly harmful impact on physical and mental health. "We know from several studies that those who have sleep deprivation has much higher risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and depression."
These are some ways that lack of sleep can affect your health:
1. Bad Diet
"Lack of sleep causes nourish the worst," says Cramer.
According to a study by the Spanish agency, more than a third of people eat poorly when sleeping little.
The reason, according to the expert, is that in this situation usually eat unhealthy food, and so the lack of sleep is linked to weight gain.
The scientific community also associated with lack of sleep to obesity and diabetes.
According to a study conducted in 2015 by researchers in Qatar, little sleep increases the appetite and insulin resistance.
Sleep well, says the Royal Society Public Health of Spain, is "essential for the regulation of metabolism, especially in children, and there is evidence of the relationship between sleep and the incidence of childhood obesity."
In summary, the guidance is to "sleep well eat better."
2. Mental health affected
Sleep deprivation is related to a variety of physical, mental and behavioral disorders.
"Mental health is a private matter and, in a way, is a vicious circle: you have mental problems, sleep little, and vice versa And it feels worse.."
Sleep deprivation increases the risk of mental disorders
For Cramer, seek psychological help is "vital" in these cases. Her advice for cases of insomnia is to seek treatment with specific drugs or behavioral therapy, which shows, he says, be "highly effective."
According to the Spanish organization Institute of Sleep Medicine, sleep deprivation is associated with psychological problems, depression and anxiety.
3. Accident Risk
The possibility of having accidents grows with the lack of sleep.
"One in five accidents has to do with lack of sleep," says Cramer.
security organ of the roads in the US estimates that 40,000 people a year suffer accidents related to sleep deprivation in the country
According to the US highway safety agency (NHTSA, its acronym in English), 40,000 people are injured each year in the country for lack of sleep-related problems, and 1,550 people die in these types of accidents.
Harvard Medical School study has already pointed out that 250,000 drivers asleep at the wheel per day in the US.
But the danger is not only in the streets, Cramer says, citing the risk of domestic accidents. "Sleep deprivation puts at risk our health in many ways."
4. Minor physical performance
Sleeping well is important to have energy throughout the day.
It is, in fact, a fundamental aspect for the functioning of our daily lives, experts point out.
Professional athletes can sleep little and still show good performance, but it is important to rest long enough after the exercise.
Sleep has a significant impact on the physical and mental well-being because it has regenerative function
The problem of lack of sleep is the impact on physical performance, because the body needs a minimum number of hours of rest.
"The regeneration process of brain and physical tissue occurs at night. If there is no rest there is no proper recovery, and this affects the physical and intellectual performance," says Madrid Mateu, physical education coordinator.
In addition, practice physical exercídios promotes better sleep, hence the perfect combination of activities.
5. Cognitive Limitation
"We know that lack of sleep or poor sleep quality has a great negative impact on health in the short and long term," experts say the WASM.
The effects impact the ability of attention, memory retrieval and learning.
"We should understand sleep the same way we understand other things that benefit our health such as proper diet and physical activity," recalls Cramer.
For the researcher, the act of sleeping well is often underestimated, but it is something that should concern everyone. "It's a public health issue."
Source: Welfare
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This article was translated by an automatic translation system, and was therefore not reviewed by people.