is one of the best things for our health, and waking up after a fantastic night’s sleep may leave us refreshed, energised and ready for the day. However, sleep is one of the things which may often be overlooked in today’s society, though there are quite a few surprising benefits of a great night’s sleep. According to sleep specialist Shawn Stevenson, millions of people are chronically sleep-deprived today.

He goes on to say that sleep deprivation may result in immune system failure, , cancer, , depression, and loss simply to mention a few. He says that the best time to go to sleep is by 10pm, that’s time that kicks in for adults and you start to feel sleepy. Melatonin is a that regulates your sleep and wake cycles. It’s between 10pm and 2am which you find the highest quality of sleep, and your body repairs itself. There’s also an economic effect of lack of sleep.

The Rand Report (2016) looks in detail at the economic effect of too little sleep. Sleep has been demonstrated to assist with the conversion of short term memories to long-term memories, and help with our level of imagination. For me personally, it has only been recently that I’ve actually begun to comprehend the surprising advantages of a great night’s sleep. Before changing my sleeping habits and going to bed much earlier, I discovered, the majority of the time, I’d feel lethargic throughout the day, was always exhausted, and had limited attention.

Going to bed before midnight and having between seven and nine hours sleep average means I now have more throughout the day, better focus and I’m more productive than before. Lack of sleep can have a severe impact on our cognitive capabilities, mood and over time may result in chronic conditions from CFS () to cancer. Research suggests the optimum quantity of sleep we need daily is 7-10 hours. Go to bed before midnight and receive at least 7-8 hours of sleep. If you have trouble sleeping at least have the chance to break your body as much as possible in bed.