Sleep deprivation has become an epidemic. The National Health Interview Survey shows that: “Nearly 30% of adults reported an average of ≤6 hours of sleep per day in 2005-2007. In 2009, only 31% of high school students reported getting at least 8 hours of sleep on an average school night.”
Sleep is very important because it helps our body remove cellular wastes and toxins, and gives us energy for the day ahead. Lack of sleep has been known to cause weight gain and may even increase the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
“If you’re having trouble sleeping, please don’t ignore it,” says Dr. Joseph Mercola. “Taking steps to get the proper sleep you need will make your life more enjoyable and your body healthier. What may surprise you is that many of the best ways to get better sleep are straightforward and quite easy for most people to implement.”
Now new research from the University of California, San Francisco shows that short sleepers are four times more likely to catch a cold.
According to Aric Prather, PhD, assistant professor of Psychiatry at UCSF and lead author of the study, this is the first study to use objective sleep measures to link sleep duration and habits to cold and flu risk.
“Short sleep was more important than any other factor in predicting subjects’ likelihood of catching cold,” Prather said. “It didn’t matter how old people were, their stress levels, their race, education or income. It didn’t matter if they were a smoker. With all those things taken into account, statistically sleep still carried the day.”
The new research highlights the importance of sleep. It is not just a matter of being tired when you don’t get enough sleep, it can affect your immune system and overall health as well.
“In our busy culture, there’s still a fair amount of pride about not having to sleep and getting a lot of work done,” Prather said. “We need more studies like this to begin to drive home that sleep is a critical piece to our wellbeing.”
The study showing that short sleepers are four times more likely to catch a cold was published in the journal SLEEP.
Note: None of the information in our website is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any illness or disease. The content on our website is for educational purposes only.
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REFERENCES:
1. “Short Sleepers Are Four Times More Likely to Catch a Cold.” UC San Francisco. UC San Francisco, 31 Aug. 2015. Web. 08 Sept. 2015.
2. “Behaviorally Assessed Sleep and Susceptibility to the Common Cold.” SLEEP. SLEEP, n.d. Web. 08 Sept. 2015.
