Lack of sleep affects your brain

Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise. There’s a lot of truth to this old saying as a lack of sleep affects your brain and may negatively influence your performance at work, your creativity and your health. Below, you can learn more about why this is the case and get 5 tips for getting a good night's sleep.

If you have trouble falling asleep at night, or if you consciously neglect your sleep by working late or surfing the web, your health may be at risk.

”By not spending enough time with your head on your pillow, you weaken your ability to think clearly, and you are also at risk of falling seriously ill”, explains Line Charlotte Christensen, who is senior consultant in PFA Pension’s Preventive Measures, Health and Actuarial Department.

Don’t underestimate the importance of sleep

Lack of sleep drains your energy and makes you less productive. If you suffer from sleep deprivation, you may experience that you work less efficiently than you otherwise would, and you may have less energy left for your family, friends and leisure activities. In other words, lack of sleep can affect both your personal life and your career.

More than a third of the population (36 %) suffers from sleep difficulties, and about one in five suffers from serious sleep difficulties. It may affect both your physical and mental health if you night after night get less than the recommended seven to nine hours of sleep. Lack of sleep is becoming more and more common, and, like a thief in the night, it may rob you of your energy and vitality.

Your brain needs rest

It is common knowledge that sleep is good for the brain, but new research from Rochester University in Minnesota provides the first direct evidence for why your brain cells need sleep.

”The research shows that your brain and body recover when you sleep. This means that the brain removes harmful proteins that are formed in the cells during the day while your brain is busy working. If you don’t get enough sleep, the brain doesn‘t have time to cleanse all the brain cells. This confuses the cells and reduces your ability to think creatively, which is required of many people at work or at home. Lack of sleep also increases the risk of heart attacks, strokes, type 2 diabetes and development of stress and obesity”, Line Charlotte Christensen explains.

Thus, in the long term, it doesn’t pay off to sacrifice your sleep to stay up late to finish off some work. Either your efficiency will gradually be reduced, or you will ultimately fall ill due to sleep deprivation.

”Sleep deprivation makes you less productive, which means that the extra work effort combined with a lack of sleep will ultimately prolong your working hours. It is a common problem, which is especially tragic in a world where we are more and more dependent on our mental sharpness", Line Charlotte Christensen points out.

In other words, there are many good reasons to watch your bedtime. If you want inspiration for how to sleep better and lead a healthier lifestyle in general, try PFA's health app PFA Health (only available in Danish) which is full of good advice that is often quite easy to follow.

Sleep deprivation makes you less productive, which means that the extra work effort combined with a lack of sleep will ultimately prolong your working hours. It is a common problem, which is especially tragic in a world where we are more and more dependent on our mental sharpness.

5 tips to help you fall asleep

1. Stop working and turn off all of your devices

Research from Harvard Medical School, among others, shows that the use of tablets before going to bed prolongs the time it takes to fall asleep, and it disturbs the circadian rhythm and the essential deep sleep. Thus, the blue light from tablets, smartphones and other devices disturbs your sleep and should be avoided as much as possible in the hours before going to bed. If you work during the evening, you should stop approximately two hours before bedtime.

2. Get rid of noise and disturbances

If you are disturbed by traffic noise, neighbours playing loud music or your partner's snoring, you should use earplugs when you sleep. Make sure that there are no electronic gadgets in your bedroom that may disturb you while sleeping or when you try to fall asleep. Consider setting your phone to flight mode, so that it cannot disturb you in any way.

3. Skip caffeine after lunch

A cup of coffee after dinner or a caffeinated energy drink in the afternoon can be quite a treat. However, depending on when you go to bed, caffeine in the late afternoon or evening is a bad idea if you want to ensure a good night’s sleep. Caffeine is stimulating, and in addition to making it harder for you to fall asleep, you also risk reducing your deep sleep, which is when the regeneration process is most effective.

4. Get some fresh air and exercise every day

A bit of sun or wind in your cheeks, a swift bike ride or a walk out in the open during the day will naturally make you more tired, which can help you to fall asleep.

5. Wake up at the same time every day

Even though it may sound tiringly boring, it’s actually a good idea to get up at the same time every day – also during the weekend. That way, your body follows a rhythm that also makes you more inclined to go to bed at a decent hour.

Facts about sleep

• According to research, the negative effects of sleep deprivation are so severe that people who are slightly intoxicated are more productive than people who lack sleep.
• You are more calm when you are fully rested and clear-headed. Your ability to remain calm under pressure is closely related to your general performance and your energy levels at work.
• Sleep is divided into several phases that replace each other: drowsy sleep, light sleep, deep sleep and REM sleep. During the night, your sleep will typically consist of 25 % deep sleep, 25 % REM sleep and 50 % light sleep. The brain and the body regenerate most effectively during deep sleep.
• Sleep deprivation can cause memory loss, ADHD-like symptoms, elevated body temperature, weakened immune system, increased risk of type 2 diabetes, etc. Sleep deprivation also affects your cognitive abilities; that is your ability to acquire, understand and recognise knowledge.
• According to the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School, the short-term productivity advantages gained by skipping sleep in order to work are easily overtaken by the negative effects of sleep deprivation on your mood, your ability to focus and your energy levels during the days that follow.