What happens to the body if you stay up all night

neurophysiologist, neurologist, expert of UniProf Academy of Physicians.

What is the danger of sleep deprivation?

How lack of sleep affects the body

To understand what happens if you don’t sleep all night, you first need to understand why you need sleep and what processes take place during this time.

First, in sleep, the body is cleansed of toxins and products of the day’s activity. This is done by the lymphatic system, which works most effectively in deep sleep. The same applies to the glymphatic system of the brain, which frees it from toxins.

Secondly, in sleep another important process takes place – restoration of the ability of the body’s cells to produce energy. When we sleep, the work of the immune system is also adjusted, including defense against viruses and destruction of malignant cells.

Thirdly, hormones are produced at night, including cortisol, on which all vital functions depend, including energy production, blood pressure, and adequate blood glucose levels. In addition, in sleep we memorize and assimilate information, transform it into experience. This is probably where the expression “the morning is wiser in the evening” came from.

If the lack of sleep – not your conscious choice, and you simply can not fall asleep in the evening, there are several exercises that can help. Share them in the material.

What happens if you stay up all night

Going back to the question of what happens if you stay awake all night, it’s obvious. If you stay awake for twenty-four hours, nothing fatal will happen. However, many bodily functions may be impaired.

Lack of energy

Obviously, we will not be awake. Because of the lack of energy and the fact that everything is given with difficulty. The slightest new information or task will cost a lot of effort, so even small things can be annoying.

Difficulties in solving tasks

This is natural: the body wants to just be left alone. Many people’s speech suffers after lack of sleep, it can be and reservations, and vagueness of wording. So it is definitely not worth experimenting with interrupting sleep, especially before an important event, such as a speech or an exam.

Health problems

Due to the fact that the immune system has not had time to recover from lack of sleep, it is very easy to catch colds and infections. Therefore, you should especially avoid hypothermia and drafts after sleep restriction. Due to low levels of cortisol, the stress hormone, blood pressure and blood glucose levels decrease, so some people experience weakness and tendency to faint.

As you can see, even a single episode of lack of sleep can knock you out of your groove. This can be quite survivable, if you observe the sleep schedule. But with its systematic lack of systematic violation of the above processes leads to serious consequences. Among them, increasing the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and cancer. Therefore, we must remember that everything is good in moderation.

If you sleep the required amount of sleep, but still do not sleep well and constantly feel tired, it may indicate problems with the body. The possible causes are described in the article.