9 things that happen to
your body when you sleep!
After having a rough day at work, all you want to do when you
get back to your abode is relish that last meal of the day and simply crash
yourself against those soft mattresses you bought last year in Diwali. Days come
when you’re so exhausted that you come home and tell your wife that you won’t have
to energy to even eat tonight, all you want to do is simply sleep it off! What’s
interesting is the fact that when you enter this mystical wonderland, there’s
quite a list of things that happen to you which you probably were never aware
of. Here are a few noteworthy of mentioning:
1. 1. Your eyes move RAPIDLY! A phase of sleep known
as REM {rapid eye movement} sleep makes your eye move rapidly from one
direction to another. This happens involuntarily without you even knowing about
it. This contributes to about 20-25% of sleep every night.
2. 2. Your temperature has a major hit too! This drop
may be of a degree Celsius or two. Now you know why we’re always so keen on
having a cool room while sleeping. Not just because it’s rather comfortable,
but also because a temperature around your body temperature will help you sleep
better!
3 4. You get paralyzed! Ever experienced a time when
you feel you’re been chased by a rabid dog but you cannot run? You try and move
your legs with maximum strength but you just fail. That’s you in .the REM phase
of sleep, again.
4. 5. You pump out growth hormones : An hormone called,
Growth Hormone ( GH ), which is necessary for your long bones to grow and your
body to develop is released when you sleep. Other than that, a hormone called
cortisol, which is a steroid hormone secreted by your adrenals ( they’re a solitary
organ present on top of each kidney ) and is necessary for blood glucose
regulation and immune function.
5. 6.Your heart rate drops down : Your heart has a
lesser load to pump and thus the working capacity is lowered thereby lowering
heart function. Therefore your heart has a rather relief period wherein it’s can
reduce it’s output.
6. 7 Your blood pressure drops down! Evidently as one’s
heart rate decreases one’s blood pressure also falls. This is accompanied by a
fall in respiratory rate too
7. 8. You might execute a lot of involuntary actions !
Sleep walking, sleep talking, sleep eating, all these activities have been made
known to most of us by the funny element displayed in movies. But they do
happen in reality too. Next time you see
your sibling reach out to the fridge in his sleep to have that slice of
icecream, don’t bully him/her the next morning, they honestly a victim to sleep
eating.
8. 9. Your brain takes over the cleaning job. Just like
a vacuum cleaner clearing off all the unwanted /dust in the house, similarly
the brain also is on a detox mission when you’re sleeping. All the unwanted
toxins in the brain are cleared out by the brain. That’s why skipping a
goodnight’s sleep is so disastrous.
There’s probably a lot more going on when you sleep which we
still don’t know. In the midst of that beautiful break you take from life every
night, the natures enthralls upon you all it’s miraculous showers. Science has
made a terrific progress today, yet so many things undiscovered.
