Why Is Good Sleep Important For Our Neurons?

When we sleep poorly, we feel overtired. Sleep disorders can have very serious health consequences on a physical and psychological level. So it is very important that we get enough and good sleep. This applies to all living things that have a nervous system. But what exactly happens to our neurons when we sleep? Find out more about why good sleep is so important to our neurons!

There is a lot of scientific work on the fact that our sleep is a vital function for us. If we do not have restful sleep for a long time, it can even lead to death.

The science magazine Nature Communications Sleep ( Nature Communications sleep ) published an interesting study about what exactly happened in our neurons, while we sleep. Good sleep improves the ability of our chromosomes to repair genetic damage in our neurons. The study also provides some possible explanations for our sleep:

• It facilitates the biosynthesis of macromolecules,
• and helps us to save energy.
• Sleep supports metabolic processes in the cells and
• enables processes of neuroplasticity.
• Sleep allows the brain to build long-term memory.

What exactly happens to our neurons while we sleep?

The study we just mentioned also found that there is an optimal time to repair the damage done to the DNA of our brain cells during the day: during sleep. Therefore , the genetic damage to our neurons decreases significantly when we sleep. This reduces the likelihood that our cells will malfunction.

It is also very important that you are aware that genetic damage that has developed over a long period of time can lead to the development of neurodegenerative diseases and other neurological disorders. Therefore, good, restful sleep is vital to maintaining our health.

The repair of genetic material is a remarkable process in our body and has been particularly observed in neurons. It depends on the time of day and the circadian rhythm. The great influence of the time of day on the effectiveness of cell repair could only be determined in neurons, but not in other cells.

From this we can conclude that sleep as a physiological state is very effective in repairing cell damage in neurons. In other cells, however, this relationship could not be determined to the same extent.

Why is good sleep so important to our neurons?

Based on these findings, we can state that we humans had to develop a strategy based on evolution with which we can maintain the health of our neurons. And as you can already guess, that strategy was sleep. This physiological process was best suited for this purpose due to its peculiarities and complex processes.

In addition, in the study mentioned above, the researchers found that the mechanisms for repairing genetic damage are also inversely effective. The mere fact that errors in the DNA gene sequences accumulate can lead to the genetic repair mechanisms being initiated and us becoming tired.

In addition, there is clinical evidence that severe and prolonged sleep deprivation can lead to death. This fact has been known for centuries. We can explain this serious consequence by the fact that our neurons can no longer adequately repair the genetic defects due to lack of sleep.

Without a doubt, you now understand better why it is so important that you observe a regular sleep-wake cycle in order to maintain your health. A good night’s sleep enables you to have a good life.