Monday Motivation: Get enough sleep or your brain will eat itself

The holidays are officially over for many, which means we have to change our sleeping patterns all over again to accommodate a routine lifestyle.

Sleep is one of the most important requirements for the body and brain to function at optimal level. So when you’re too tired all the time, your brain literally starts eating itself, Southern Courier reports.

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A new study published in the Journal of Neuroscience says that sleep deprivation can actually cause your brain to feed off of neurons and synaptic connections.

Using well-rested and overtired mice, neuroscientist Michele Bellesi, from the Marche Polytechnic University in Italy, led a study examining the brain’s response to poor sleep habits.

They found that poor sleep causes the brain to destroy a significant amount of neurons and cut millions of synaptic connections and the damage could be irreversible even if you recover sleep.

This puts people at risk of getting Alzheimer’s and other neurological disorders.

For five straight days, groups of mice were given varying amounts of sleep and forced to stay awake for five days straight.

During sleep the glial cells or astrocytes clear synapses to help rejuvenate the brain. They get rid of worn out or old cells to make space for new cells.

The brain is then eliminating unnecessary clutter so that you feel replenished when you wake up. However, if you stay awake, the cells start hurting the brain.

How does poor sleep destroy your brain?

It triggers astrocytes, which destroy more of the brain connections. They clear unnecessary synapses in the brain in order to remodel its wiring.

According to the study, they appear to be more active during poor sleep.

When you sleep less than the recommended eight hours, your brain is subjected to repetitive thoughts similar to those experienced by people who suffer from depression and anxiety.

These thoughts decrease attention lifespan and make people susceptible to different types of psychological disorders.

What is affected by lack of sleep?

• Your immune system is compromised when you don’t get enough sleep and your body usually needs sleep to fight off a bug.
• Your chances of developing coronary heart disease or having a stroke are greatly increased with less sleep.
• Lack of sleep is associated with higher rates of breast cancer, colon cancer, and prostate cancer.
• Your general alertness, brain function, memory, decision-making, reasoning, and problem-solving skills are affected when you do not sleep enough.
• Lack of sleep will make you forgetful.
• Your sex drive is also largely affected by lack of sleep.
• You have a higher chance of gaining weight.
• Too little sleep means more fine lines, wrinkles, uneven skin color, and marked looseness of the skin

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