Benefits of Sleep for Healthy Skin

In our busy lives, we often forget that the easiest and the cheapest beauty treatment we can have for our skin is sound sleep. Sleep offers a much better beauty routine than all the cosmetics in the world. The benefits of sleep are well known: the body gets a chance to repair cellular tissues, thus ensuring good skin health. People who get a good night’s sleep tend to get fewer wrinkles and have a young and shiny skin. Pollutants are flushed out, repairing cell damage and restoring the complexion and a radiant glow.

The body repairs itself while you sleep. There is an improvement in blood flow to the skin. While a minimum of six hours sleep is required daily, regular sleep for about 8 hours every day will result in improvement in your skin appearance. The results will be visible within 2 to 3 weeks.

In this article, I will explain the benefits of sleep and how it affects your skin. You will also learn how to get a good night’s sleep if you are facing sleep difficulties. You will not only be more relaxed but begin to look good as well.

Effects of lack of sleep on skin

Sleeplessness is a serious issue. It makes you feel tired and irritable during the day, and one feels exhausted all day. It also affects the skin, which begins to age faster. You are liable to get skin conditions such as acne, increased skin sensitivity, allergies, and increased dermatitis.

This is due to cortisol, which the body produces more when tired. Cortisol is a stress hormone that increases inflammatory skin conditions such as acne or psoriasis as it causes the skin’s sebaceous glands to produce more sebum. Clogged pores and breakouts are thus more commonly experienced among sleep-deprived patients. Cortisol also affects the overall health adversely, leading to thyroid and heart complications. Poor sleep causes increased stress hormones which in turn causes inflammatory skin.

Lack of sleep takes away the natural beauty of your skin. It increases the breakdown of collagen and hyaluronic acid, which give the skin its youth and glow. Sleep restores the body's hydration and recovers skin moisture. But if you are not getting enough sleep, the water balance in the body is disturbed, leading to puffy eyes and circles under it. Skin dryness will lead to wrinkles, and the aging process is accelerated. Sleeplessness will also cause weight gain.

More seriously, it also affects the immunity system of the body, and hence affects the body’s ability to fight illnesses. Increased skin diseases such as psoriasis, acne, and eczema may result. Lack of sleep causes decreases in blood flow to the skin, reducing the supply of oxygen, giving it a pale appearance.

Benefits of sleep

Sleep deprivation is thus a serious issue. You should not ignore it. A good sleep will reduce inflammation and improve immunity to fight against to colds, viruses and skin infections. It will lead to better skin hydration. That is why people who sleep well do not suffer from puffy eyes, dark circles, and pale complexion.

Some of the benefits of regular sleep are described below.

• Fewer Wrinkles: The new collagen produced during sleep gives a fresh look to the skin, preventing wrinkles. It repairs the skin and gives healthy cheeks. Less sleep will cause fine lines to appear on your face.
• Brighter Eyes: Puffy eyes are the signs of lack of sleep. People who sleep well have less puffiness under the eyes, which also look bright and shiny.
• Aging: The body produces melatonin during sleep, which is an anti-aging antioxidant. So a good night’s sleep every day will slow the aging process in your body.

Do make it a point to get at least 7-8 hours sleep for overall health!

Getting Adequate Sleep

In this section, I will explain how to improve your sleep routine to get a good night’s rest.

• Have regular hours: Stick to a regular schedule. Regular hours will ensure you get to sleep well.
• Exercise: Remember to exercise every day. A rigorous workout or even light exercise will improve your sleep.
• Avoid stimulants: Avoid large meals before bedtime. Do not take coffee or tea, alcohol, and sugary foods at night.
• Avoid bright lights: While it is a good idea to get exposure to bright sunshine every morning, learn to avoid bright lights and glowing screens such as mobile phones and TV in the evenings. Exposure to bright lights and screens before sleep will make it all the more difficult for you to sleep.
• Relax: The secret to good sleep is being tension free. Follow some relaxation techniques such as meditation, breathing exercises and mindfulness to help your body to relax and thereby get a sound sleep.

Conclusion

Regular sleep is an effective beauty treatment. No matter how busy your life is, make it a point to get a good night’s sleep. Stick to regular hours. The secret is to free the mind of tensions and shut out extraneous thoughts. Meditation helps. Learn to let go, rather keep holding to things that bother you. Try to get at least 8 hours of sleep every day and let your body and skin repair itself. You will feel much better when you get regular, undisturbed sleep everyday and it will begin to show on your looks.