What Happens To The Body While We Sleep?
There is no need to place a camera before going to bed to analyze what happens to the body during rest : many of the activities produced during sleep are internal and we cannot see them.
Are you curious about what happens to the body while we sleep? Keep reading this article; some data are very interesting!
What happens to the body while we sleep
As soon as we close our eyes, of course, the organism does not stop functioning. In fact, while we sleep, the body continues to work and these are its main activities:
The limbs become paralyzed
During the deepest phase of sleep, the REM phase (abbreviation in English for “rapid eye movement”) the muscles of the limbs relax, until they become paralyzed.
The body makes “jumps”
You may have experienced the sensation of falling into the void while you sleep and wake up with a start. It is the hypnic spasm , an involuntary muscle contraction that can be interpreted as an effort we make to stay awake or wake up, a kind of alarm bell.
Body temperature drops
During the day, while we are engaged in our activities, the temperature is higher because we are burning calories. When we sleep, however, we need to save energy.
The body, therefore, slows down the burning of calories. This is why we can feel cold even in summer.
The eyes move quickly, what happens to the body while we sleep
During sleep we go through five different phases, the deepest and most active of which is REM. Once this phase is reached, we start again with the first one.
This happens an hour, an hour and a half after we fall asleep. The eyes move back and forth completely involuntarily.
We delete unnecessary information
The mind is the most active part of the body during sleep. Every night it takes care of eliminating all the superfluous information that takes up space in our memory. What is worth keeping goes into long-term memory, the rest goes to the “Trash”.
We produce more growth hormones
This is one of the reasons you spend most of your time sleeping as babies (and the same goes for all newborn mammals). Growth hormone, somatotropin (or GH stands for growth hormone ), not only makes us grow, but allows muscles, bones and tissues to regenerate.
It is usually released to a greater extent in the deeper stages of sleep. Furthermore, GH counteracts the lowering of blood glucose levels.
The throat narrows
The reason for this change is due to the relaxation of the neck muscles, which is why many people snore even though their noses are not blocked.
In some cases the airways close completely or partially causing sleep apnea.
Our immune system is strengthened
You have certainly heard that we need eight hours of sleep to avoid getting sick. This is because while we sleep, we produce a large amount of antibodies, our defense against the attacks of viruses and bacteria.
For this reason, when we are cold or not feeling well, we tend to sleep more.
We grind our teeth
Bruxism is a fairly common phenomenon, especially in children and young people. The habit of grinding your teeth can be aggravated when you are under stress or when the jaw is out of alignment.
People suffering from this problem wake up with a sore mouth; the teeth eventually wear out or break.
The kidneys rest
If not, we would pee in bed! During the day, the kidney function is active and helps us filter out the toxins that accumulate in the blood. For this purpose, urine is produced. When we sleep, the filtering action of the kidneys slows down until it stops generating fluid.
Since we accumulate waste during sleep without being able to eliminate it for several hours, (unless we get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom) the color of the urine, as soon as you get up, is darker.
Eyesight improves
When we rest we generate many cells. Those of the eyes are no exception. Lack of sleep causes changes in the eyelids and the tear film that protects the cornea.
Probably we see better in the morning than in the evening and one of the reasons is this (in addition to the fact that with the passing of the hours the sight gets tired). Anyone who suffers from bags under the eyes will see that they shrink after a good sleep.
We talk in our sleep
What happens to the body while we sleep? Well yes, we can talk. In fact, many people talk in their sleep. It happens to 5% of the population and is an ailment that can be embarrassing if we share a room with someone. Curiously, most don’t remember anything they said. Stress and depression increase “night chatter”.
We feel “an explosion” in the head
A curious fact. Have you ever experienced an explosion-like sensation in your head that makes you wake up and try to figure out where the noise came from? When this happens, it means that you are going through a phase of severe stress and anxiety.
