Sleep deprivation: the effects and the foods that could help

We all know that smoking is bad for your health. Not to mention drinking too much alcohol, and eating too much fatty food. But have you ever seen a national campaign warning people about the dangers of sleep deprivation? Us neither, but the uncomfortable truth is that lack of sleep can do major damage to your health. 

In general, people need between seven to nine hours of sleep per night. Any less, and you’re increasing your chances of suffering from conditions including high blood pressure and heart disease. Yet how many of us actually get that amount of sleep on a regular basis? 

Worryingly, many of us think of sleep like a bank overdraft. We can miss a couple of hours here and there on weeknights, say, and catch up by having a Sunday lie-in, right? Wrong! In fact, research suggests it can take up to four days for your body to recover from a single hour of lost sleep. So if anything, it's more like having an overdraft where you get charged £50 for going overdrawn by £10. 

But here’s the good news. With so many of us working from home right now, we have a fresh opportunity to reorganise our schedules, and ensure we build in time for a decent sleep, night after night. And just in case you need further motivation, in this article we look at five effects of sleep deprivation you may not know about, and also let you know about some key foods that might just help you sleep better too.

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By T3 staff