The importance of sleep is beyond crucial, yet people tend to overlook it. Sleep has many beneficial factors, however the real reason behind sleep is unknown. Scientist do have multiple theories and ideas as to why we sleep. The idea that sleeping and dreaming relate to both learning and memory is nothing new. In fact, according to author Linda Hodgson, it was studied in the nineteenth century by neurologist Hughling Jackson who proposed two main factors for sleep. The first is to wipe away an unnecessary memories from that day. The second is to consolidate the important experiences.(Hodgens 1506) This theory has been backed up by stating that if one tried to learn a new task and gets a good night’s sleep after, they are far more able to remember what they have learned compared to someone who has stayed up all night trying to learn the task and got very little, to no sleep.
Some scientist also believe that the states of sleep serves different functions. They propose that the NREM state aids in restoration of the body in the brain, and REM sleep plays a more complex role in restoring brain processes, “including some higher-level brain processes involved in focusing attention, waking ego mechanisms,
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However, there are many negative side effects to sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation is usually broken down into three categories: sleep fragmentation, partial sleep deprivation, and total sleep deprivation. In one study, the effects of sleep deprivation on the immune system concluded that the loss of sleep affected both behavioral functions and physiological functions. The conductors of this research then went on to conclude that the “lack of sleep has been linked to emotional and physical health effects including depression, burnout, obesity, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cardiovascular disease, stroke and even death.”
Is sleep important for memory consolidation? Past research has found that sleep is an important factor in the consolidation of newly acquired memories; however, this consolidation often depends on the specific memory as well as when (e.g., time after learning) sleep occurs. It is important to note that sleep is not constant, throughout the night. Sleep is a cycle that is broken down into rapid eye movement (REM) and non-rapid eye movement (non-REM) sleep (Stickgold, 2005). Non-REM consists of sleep stages 1 through 4, in which stages 3 and 4 constitute what is known as slow-wave sleep (SWS) (Rasch & Born, 2008). Moreover, the construct of memory is often divided into different types of memories, declarative (e.g., facts and events) and non-declarative (e.g., procedural skills) (Stickgold, 2005). When discussing memory consolidation, research has defined it as a progression of memory stabilization that leads memories to become resistant to interference (Stickgold, 2005). Results from past research indicate that memory consolidation occurs through the reactivation of memories during sleep, which enhances and stabilizes the memory (Diekelmann & Born, 2010).
...ep. There are events in sleep that are associated with synaptic modification, which is the basis of brain rewiring that enhances cognition. There is evidence that sleep accelerated transcription of cortical genes that are associated with protein synthesis9. These newly generated proteins are known to be required for strengthening of existing synapses and building new synapses. Studies have found increase of factors associated with brain-plasticity and enhanced learning during sleep5. These factors include phosphorylated or activated CREB, a transcriptional factor, as well as Arc, BDNF, and NGFI-A. These evidence help explain how sleep can influence brain rewiring through synaptic modification. This mechanism helps explain how sleep can modify the brain and ultimately enhance learning. This is a strong evidence that supports the synaptic downscaling hypothesis.
Sleep deprivation (SD) is a common phenomenon encountered by many individuals with different professions. [3] These professions include healthcare, security and drivers working at night. [1] The average length of sleep that an individual needs is between 7 and 8.5h per day. [quoted in 1] However, this varies between individuals with different age and gender. Pilcher and Huffcutt found that both total and partial SD give adverse effects on human functioning. [2] Researchers have concluded that sleep deprivation affects cognitive performance [1,2], motor performance and mood of an individual. [2]
Why do we need sleep? Even the most gifted scientist on the planet don’t know the answer to this question. But, there are many ideas on why we need sleep. One reason we need sleep is because without it obesity would be an even bigger problem in this world than it already is. Obesity is the condition of being very fat or overweight. Scientist have discovered that short-term sleep can make you hungrier and make you eat more. Another reason that we need sleep is because without enough of it you will have a higher risk of getting diabetes. Diabetes mellitus is a very serious condition that occurs when the body can’t use glucose normally. Scientist have proven that too little or too much sleep was linked with a host of chronic diseases, including type 2 diabetes. Another serious medical emergency that can happen to you if you don’t get enough sleep is a stroke. A stroke is what occurs when your blood flow is interrupted to part of the brain. A stroke is a serious medical emergency that requires immediate treatment. Scientist have discovered that with a while of not enough sleep your stroke risk quadruples. Scientist have also found a recurrent sleep pattern called REM. REM is a recurrent sleep pattern during which dreaming occurs while the eyes rapidly shift under close lids. REM stands for Rapid Eye Movement. In comparison to REM there is NREM. NREM is a recurring sleep state during which rapid eye movement doesn’t occur. NREM stands for Non-Rapid eye movement.
Getting sufficient sleep is a basic human need and is vital for life. According to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, sleep is a high priority for survival. Having enough sleep is therefore important to restore body and brain functions, preserve energy, maintain general well-being and prevent illnesses.
There are also risks involved with not getting enough sleep. Most people will be very sleepy and drowsy during the day, mood and behavioral problems. and even increased vulnerability to drugs and alcohol. These things could also develop into more serious sleep disorders.
Many studies of the role of sleep are partial or total sleep deprivation studies which support Oswold’s restoration theory. One of these supporting studies was Dement’s. He deprived participants of REM sleep and consequently found that they increased their number of attempted REM stages from 12 to 26 over 4-7 nights. During their first uninterrupted night, participants increased their REM sleep by 10% which is known as REM rebound. This suggests the importance of REM and the possibility that the purpose of sleep is to get into REM sleep. The participants reported anxiety, irritability and difficulty concentrating which shows that REM sleep is needed to avoid these affects and enable brain recovery which corresponds with Oswold’s theory. Even so, Dement’s study has low ecological validity, it has low population validity because there were only 8 participants and they were a self-selected sample. Participants would probably have shown demand characteristics because the experiment took place in a lab. It also has low mundane realism because people would not usually sleep in a lab and be interrupted repeatedly.
In the world of higher education, students at the collegiate level are highly likely to be overwhelmed with course load, in addition to sports and extra-curricular activities (Jacobs & Dodd, 2003). These factors have the potential to lead to various amounts of sleep deprivation, and as the research of Nilsson, Sunderstrom, Karlsson et al. (2004) has shown, sleep deprivation is correlated with higher levels of fatigue, impairments in speed and accuracy as well as limitations in cognitive and physical performances. One way to cope with this fatigue that has shown to have very positive results on people of all ages is taking naps. In addition to reducing sleepiness, Milner & Cote (2008) have determined that “napping may lead to considerable benefits in terms of mood, alertness and cognitive performances”. It is these benefits that nappers seek when engaging in napping activities.
Another myth is that you can learn complicated things, like a new language, while you are sleep. Personally no, because the only way you can learn something is to be awake. When a person fall to sleep while listening to a cd player or tape player while they are sleeping they are not going to hear what is said when they are in a deep sleep.
At first, people's eyes begin to feel dry and they have trouble concentrating, causing their eyesight to weaken. Their reaction time slows down as well as their thinking process and judgment. These effects are minor but as one’s body weakens, their immune system is affected as well. This may cause their body to catch an illness or disease. Afterwards, their body becomes very weak and it will take a while before it can heal properly. In addition, their heart gets tired and cannot perform its job properly, so prolonged sleep deprivation also leads to risk of heart diseases. Not only does sleep loss make people feel tired, but it is also harmful to their body by increasing the risk of health problems (“Sleep Deprivation: What Are the Physical Effects” , Griffin R. Morgan, Mann Jeff, Peri Camille, Pietrengeelo
Because sleep is vital to our well-being, we have to make sure to get an enough quality sleep at the right times as it helps to protect our mental and physical health, quality of life and safety.
Lack of sleep affects us many different ways in our daily lives. Think of yourself as a battery, and you’re using all the energy. After you 're done using the energy, you have to charge it. Humans are just like batteries when it comes to sleep. We use all of our energy in the day time doing our daily activities. Like a battery, if you don’t rest or charge yourself up, you’re not going to function very well. It is necessary to have a satisfying amount of sleep. Lack of sleep will affect you in ways such as: mood swings, loss of focus, change in behavior, and difficulties in everyday tasks.
Sleep is a very important factor in the human function. Our body and brain is able to reset itself and rejuvenate while we sleep. When we do not get the required amount of sleep, we start to feel lethargic and foggy minded, because our mind and body wasn’t able to replenish itself. Sleep is imperative that an insignificant rest deficiency or lack of sleep can affect our ability to remember things; decisions and can affect our temperament. Chronic sleep deficiency can get the body to feel agitated and it could lead to serious health problems such as, heart problems, stress, acne, and obesity.
“Sleep is increasingly recognized as important to public health”(Brain Basics:Understanding sleep). Going without sleep can really change you cause all you will want to do is sleep throughout the day when you should be doing something else. It makes you not sleepy all day. You will feel great if you get the right amount of sleep needed. “It may be that we can reduce the need at least, because it’s so annoying to waste so much time sleeping.” You must fall asleep when are beginning to feel sleepy so you will feel a lot better. “Unintentionally falling asleep, nodding off while driving, and having difficulty performing daily tasks because of sleepiness all may contribute to these hazardous outcomes”(Brain Basics: Understanding Sleep). Going without sleep will not
Sleep is very important for human beings. Sleeping means taking rest for every person and each person spends one-third of his lifetime sleeping. Without sleeping, no one can exist in this world. Sleeping is essential for a person’s health and well-being throughout his life. Getting enough quality sleep at the right times helps all people protect their mental health, physical health and safety. A person who does not get enough sleep might suffer from mental disorders, diseases and even harmful situations. Therefore, it is important for every human being to have enough sleep.