Winston Churchill, Napoleon, Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison were all known to enjoy naps throughout the day. They likely knew what many of us so easily overlook: sleep improves alertness, mood and performance.
Yet only two-thirds of Americans get enough sleep to feel their best, according to a poll by the National Sleep Foundation. (Global data on sleep is not as easy to find, but I am confident people in other countries have similar issues to the U.S.) This sleep deficit is partially because sleep can seem like the easiest thing to sacrifice in our busy lives. Yet sleep can have a big impact on not only how you feel but also how your body functions. Getting plenty of shuteye has a profound impact on overall health—especially the heart. Here are three reasons why:
1. Sleep activates the body’s repair mechanisms
Sleep is a time of restoration and repair. While you sleep, your body works to heal and repair your heart and blood vessels. Getting the recommended eight hours of sleep nightly gives your body the precious repair time it needs.
2. Sleep allows your heart to “rest”
While your heart beats 24 hours a day, seven days a week, sleep is the time it slows down and “rests.” Heart rate declines during sleep, producing a natural drop in blood pressure. Lower blood pressure means your heart doesn’t have to work as hard to pump blood throughout the 100,000 miles of blood vessels in your body.
3. Sleep improves oxygenation
Sleep promotes oxygenation—a process that increases oxygen in all of the body’s systems—at a deep level. Your heart is responsible for circulating blood to all of the organs, tissues and cells. Since oxygen is necessary to keeping the heart—and entire body—well, this improved oxygenation is key in supporting heart health.
Sleep is just as important as eating a balanced diet and exercising. While every person is unique in how much sleep they need, a good general guideline is to get eight hours of quality sleep each and every night.
Do you get enough sleep each night? What helps you sleep better?
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