You have a deadline to finish.
you decide to stifle the yawn and push through the night. sure it is already
late,but you drink some coffee and keep going. Your body,of course,is fighting
you every step of the way. whether you realize it or not, your brain has
already started to check out for the night. after about 18 hours without sleep,
your reaction time begins to slow from 1/4 of a second and then longer.
It should be
Thomas Edison. Before he invented the light bulb people slept an average of ten
hours per night. Today the average is seven hours or less as we have learned to
ignore the body’s call for sleep.
when
we are thirsty;we drink. when we are hungry; we eat. but when we are tired;we
often work abusing our bodies to the point of exhaustion. This is one of the
greatest hindrances to recovery.
Rest
is one of the most basic healers known to humanity.When we become sick, what is
the thing we want most to do ? To lie down. Nature will restore vigor and strength
during sleep hours, if her laws are not violated.
“.............if he sleep, he shall do well
------John 11:12
Losing
only three hours of sleep can cut the effectiveness of your immune system in
half. furthermore, the Institute of Medicine issued a report that confirmed
definite links between sleep deprivation and increased risks of
hypertension,diabetes,obesity,depression,heart attack,and stroke. A ground
breaking 1999 study showed that after six days on only four hours of sleep,
healthy volunteers fell into a pre-diabetic state. Sleep also gives the heart a
chance to slow down, and those who sleep less than six hours a night have as
much as a 66 percent greater prevalence of hypertension.
How
well we sleep can seriously alter the balance of hormones in our body. This can
then disrupt our sleep/wake cycle (circadian rhythm). A disrupted circadian
rhythm may influence cancer progression through shifts in hormones like
melatonin, which the brain makes during sleep.
Nature will restore your vigor &
strength when
you
sleep, if her laws are not violated
Since the work of
building up the body and mind takes place during the hours of rest, it is
essential, especially in youth, that sleep should be regular and abundant.
while sleeping, the brain continues to learn by deconstructing memory and
connecting it to related things, resulting in faster and more accurate
performance after a good night’s sleep.
A
good night’s sleep can improve the memory by 30 percent. After a day’s work the
brain cell is exhausted;but after a good night’s sleep it is refreshed and
ready to resume its normal work. This can be demonstrated with the microscope.
After work, the nerve cell is shrunken inside, and the little granules in its
protoplasm disappear. After rest they are again plump and the granules are
restored.
A
good night’s sleep helps you control your appetite. Two hormones regulate your
appetite: one tells you when you are hungry (ghrelin), the other tells you when
you are full (leptin). when you do not get enough sleep there is a decrease in
the production of the ‘full’ hormone and an increase in the production of the
‘hungry’ hormone encouraging you to eat more.
After
following over one million participants for six years, the largest study on
sleep duration and mortality found that those who slept about seven hours had
the highest survival rate. Those who slept less than 4.5 hours had the worst.
Nine hours of sleep or more each night was also associated with a higher mortality
risk. Experts tend to agree that the majority of people require about eight
hours of sleep each night.
To
sleep well, you need to work well. “The sleep of a laboring man is sweet,
whether he eat little or much: but the abundance of the rich will not suffer
him to sleep” (Ecclesiastes 5:12).
Idleness is the cause of many
diseases. Rather than taking a harmful sleeping pill, make sure to do strenuous
outdoor physical labor every day.
Abstain
from all stimulants (Caffeine,alcohol,tobacco,spicy foods). avoid eating
anything a couple hours before bedtime.
Regular
time for going to bed and rising are very helpful. The best time to go to bed
is between 8:00 PM and 9:00 PM. Deepest sleep is between 9.00 PM to 12.00 AM.
The body, particularly the adrenals, recharges the most during 11:00 PM to 1:00
Am.
Make
sure your eyes are exposed to sunlight every morning, this enhances
melatonin-production. Sleep in complete darkness (cover your eyes so no light
penetrates). Even a little light during the night can disrupt your circadian
rhythm and your pineal gland’s production of melatonin (your body’s number one
anti-aging hormone) and serotonin (your happines hormone).
A
relaxing soak in warm water will help you unwind after a stressful day. Have a
cup or two of your preferred choice of a calming herbal tea.
Rest Embraces Much More Than a Good Night’s Sleep
“Come
ye yourselves apart.....and rest a while”(Mark 6:31). It is important to take
time for rest, contemplation, and recreation (not for amusement). Recreation is
recreative; it refreshes the mind and the body enabling us to return with new
vigor to the earnest work of life. Amusement , on the other hand, is sought for
the sake of pleasure and is often carried to excess; it absorbs the energies
that are required for useful work and thus proves a hindrance to life true success.
Recreation
is needful for those who are engaged in physical labor and is still more
essential for those whose labor is principally mental. Recreation that benefits
those around you is most beneficial. Spending time outdoors in nature in some
form of recreation (hiking,picnicking,swimming, etc).
Watching
TV is not a good source of recretion. An analysis of thirty-five different
scientific studies has identified no fewer than fifteen negative health effects
associated with watching long hours of television. Among these effects are
heart trouble, cancer,diabetes,autism, Alzheimer’s disease eyesight damage, and
sleeping difficulties.
