book review - "Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams
564 sats \ 12 comments \ @stack_harder 13 Nov BooksAndArticles
I read this one a while back and thought i would mention it here because sleep is something that get's so overlooked by a lot of people.
The author is a neuroscientist and, i think by now, quite a famous and sleep expert.
The book discusses how sleep influences everything from our memory and immune system to our emotional stability and lifespan and since i read it, i have taken sleep much more seriously. It sounds boring, but it was a very interesting read.
The craziest fact that now think about every time i get a bad night people who get fewer than 5 hours of sleep per night can experience a reduction of up to 70% in natural killer T cell activity the next day (these are the cells that are responsible for sniffing out abnormal or infected cells).
So basically, just by not sleeping enough you increase your risk of your body not catching cells that could end up multiplying and causing cancer.
so yeah, any time i wake up and take a while to get back to sleep, my mind goes straight to my reduced killer T cell activity lol
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32 sats \ 1 reply \ @bordalix 8h
SoBrief makes a good job summarising books:
https://sobrief.com/books/why-we-sleep
For me, the best hack is having no alarm clock and waking up naturally (ie a the end of sleep cycle). This simple rule changed my life.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @stack_harder OP 5h
no alarm clock is amazing, although sadly in my case i have to get up at 6am to get the kids to school, it;s absolute shit. luckily we have a long 3 month summer break when with no alarm clocks
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32 sats \ 1 reply \ @carlosfandango 23h
because sleep is something that get's so overlooked by a lot of people.
People need to understand this.. improving the quality you get can do more for your health than almost anything else.
Great review - the author is sometimes argued with - but a book well worth sharing!
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20 sats \ 0 replies \ @stack_harder OP 5h
sadly a lot of people talk about not getting much sleep like it's a flex, because they're so busy or important. just pure ignorance
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10 sats \ 3 replies \ @denlillaapan 13 Nov
HAHA, ironic right? A book on the importance of sleep makes you worry more about your sleep.
Yeah, I appreciated this book a lot too. Have returned to it now and again. It's hard for an outsider to judge to what extent the claims are OK (I've seen some stuff "debunked" by others, but that's the nature of these things I suppose).
Still, wonderfully illuminating read. Makes me feel less bad about "sleeping in" too; I went to bed too late, body wants/needs it so just let it.
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10 sats \ 1 reply \ @south_korea_ln 13 Nov
I've seen some stuff "debunked" by others
I guess you are referring to this.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @denlillaapan 23h
pff no idea.
Naturally everything comes over/via SN so yes -- even ~~five months before I was around :P
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10 sats \ 0 replies \ @stack_harder OP 5h
yeah, i think deep down, it's not rocket science to know that when we wake up refreshed, we feel better and perform better. for me 8 hours is ideal, 7 is borderline and i will supplement with a nap later in the day
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0 sats \ 3 replies \ @Manikese 20h
Some people get 4 hours of sleep and are incredibly healthy, active, and energetic. Some people get 10 hours of sleep and are sick often, sedentary, and lethargic. It really depends on your awareness, mindfulness, and your cultivation of energy.
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0 sats \ 2 replies \ @stack_harder OP 5h
i think for the vast majority of people, sleeping 4 hours is a very, very bad idea. there are some genetic outliers that do seem to function just fine on very little sleep, they are rare tough.
Russians used to say how Lenin only slept 4 hours per night because he was so dedicated to the revolution, but look what happened to him, stroke and invalid at 51
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0 sats \ 1 reply \ @Manikese 4h
Sadhguru sleeps 4 hours per night and he is healthier than 95% of people his age.
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0 sats \ 0 replies \ @stack_harder OP 2h
that's an N of one. like saying my grandad was a smoker and lived to 100, thus smoking is good.
that being said, I'm not the sleep police and if you are sleeping less and feeling good and have good health markers etc, then that's great
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