When it comes to sleep, we believe that quality is just as important as quantity. Sleep is an essential daily ritual that many of us find ourselves sacrificing for deadlines, family, social life and TV mini-series, but nothing shows up quicker in your skin that the effects of lack of sleep.
Shortened sleep affects everything from our ability to focus, process rational thought and make decisions to processing information, our mood, our memory, weight gain and increased inflammation. However, oftentimes quality sleep is hard to come by. We’ve put together a quick reminder of why you should prioritise it!
5 Health Benefits of Quality Sleep
1. Look After Your Mental Health
Not only is sleep necessary for your physical wellbeing but also for your psychological health. “… Sleep recalibrates our emotional brain circuits, allowing us to navigate next-day social and psychological challenges with cool-headed composure,” says neurologist Matthew Walker, in his widely acclaimed book, Why We Sleep.
2. Reduce Your Stress Levels
Less stress, heightened focus and better sleep are just a few of the benefits associated with meditation. What’s more, it helps to pro-long your sleep according to the London Meditation Centre. “The very deep rest of meditation does two things: gives you lots of energy and calms your system so you can fall asleep (and stay asleep!).” That said, here are a few tips on how and why to incorporate meditation into your routine.
3. Learn and Make Memories
Sleep is our brain’s time to process all of that information we have acquired over the course of the day. “Sleep is a time of intense neurological activity—a rich time of renewal, memory consolidation, brain and neurochemical cleansing, and cognitive maintenance. Properly appraised, our sleeping time is as valuable a commodity as the time we are awake. In fact, getting the right amount of sleep enhances the quality of every minute we spend with our eyes open.” says Arianna Huffington in her book, The Sleep Revolution.
4. Take Care of Your Physical Wellbeing
All of our body’s functions are aided by and sometimes facilitated through sleep. When sleep escapes you, these functions can be stunted. Acupuncture is a wonderful way to promote relaxation and fight sleeplessness. It also contributes to overall wellbeing – an ideal partner for your sleep journey!
5. It’s Called Beauty Sleep For A Reason!
There’s no doubt that lack of sleep shows up quickly in your face from skin tone and texture to puffiness and inflammation all can be linked to lack of sleep. But perhaps our favourite find is a study that shows that good sleepers feel significantly better about their looks. The well rested have a more positive perception of their appearance. The more sleep we get, the better looking we feel – so it’s true what they say about beauty sleep!
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Walker, Matthew. Why We Sleep the New Science of Sleep and Dreams. Penguin, 2018.
Huffington, Arianna. The Sleep Revolution. Random House USA, 2017.
