Sleep’s a strange thing. We all do it. We all need it. Yet we all fight it. Science still isn’t sure why we need it, but everyone agrees: it’s essential to being healthy and happy, and most of us aren’t getting nearly enough of it. There are TONS of health benefits of sleep.

While you may be able to function with less sleep, adults should be getting between seven and eight hours a night. Just because you may feel “perfectly fine” with only four hours of shuteye, this doesn’t mean it’s not impacting your body, mind, and health. Even one to two hours of less sleep a night makes a huge difference on performance and functioning and, over time, can be detrimental to your health.

7 Benefits of a Solid Night’s Sleep

Not getting enough sleep impacts your whole body, makes you sluggish, moody, and more likely to be obese, have a heart attack or diabetes, and get infections. If you’re ready to commit to getting a solid night’s sleep, here are just some of the benefits you may notice.

1. Better Reasoning Skills: With seven to eight hours of sleep under your belt, you experience an improvement in problem-solving, attention to detail, and the ability to take in and retain information.
2. Less Stress: When you’re not getting enough sleep, your body and mind are more stressed, but with the proper amount of shuteye, you naturally let go of stress and feel more relaxed.
3. Increase in Immunity: When you sleep a solid eight hours, your body is prepared to fight off germs, bacteria, and viruses. Alternatively, when your body is lacking sleep, your immune system suffers, and you’re more likely to get sick.
4. Weight Loss: There is a direct link between obesity and not enough sleep, and while there’s a combination of reasons, one of biggest is the hormone leptin, which lets your brain know when you’re full. When you don’t get enough sleep, you produce less leptin and overeat.
5. Better Memory: When you sleep, your brain stays busy helping to reinforce memories and things you’ve learned. But without enough rest, its efforts are futile, and you’re less likely to remember the things that matter.
6. Creativity Boost: Along with the increase in memory, there’s also a boost in creativity when your sleeping is up to par. People are more likely to pick up creative habits and feel better about spending time in creative endeavors when they’re well-rested.
7. More Sex: Being tired is the number one reason couples in long-term relationships don’t have sex. Getting enough shuteye is an easy solution that can liven things up under the sheets.

Getting seven to eight hours of sleep a night is one of the most important things you can do for your health. That’s why Dr. Nandi wants you to be your own health hero and get enough shuteye every night of the week.

Partha’s Rx

• Try to stick to a sleep schedule: going to bed and getting up around the same time every day.
• Remove electronics, such as TVs and computers, from your bedroom.
• Stop using blue light devices, like smartphones, tablets, and laptops, a minimum of 30 minutes before bedtime.
• Stretch, engage in deep breathing activities, meditate, or do yoga to improve your sleep quality and help you fall asleep.
• Sip on chamomile tea to make you fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer.