A Ciência do Sono: Padrões de Sono e Seus Efeitos na Saúde – Aula de Conversação em Inglês

As aulas de conversação da Lingualize são diferentes. Aqui, você aprende algo realmente útil em inglês enquanto aprimora suas habilidades linguísticas. Nosso foco não está apenas em ensinar palavras e frases, mas em desenvolver a capacidade de discutir temas relevantes e complexos com confiança. Com isso, você não só melhora o seu inglês, mas também ganha conhecimento prático sobre assuntos que podem ser aplicados diretamente à sua vida e carreira.

How to Sleep Better — Simple Rules That Actually Work

Sleep improves when you fix time, light, temperature, caffeine and behavior.

1. Go to bed and wake up same hour every day

2. Cold shower in the morning raises alertness and reinforces day–night contrast.

3. In the morning get strong daylight for 5 to 15 min.

4. Take a short nap early.

5. Stop caffeine after 2 pm. Avoid alcohol near sleep.

6. At night use only amber light from below

7. Keep the room dark and around 19 °C.

8. Don't eat before going to bed.

9. If you stay awake in bed for more than 20 minutes, leave and return only when sleepy.

10. Use mask or blackout and constant neutral noise to protect continuity.

11. Take a warm shower before going to bed.

The Benefits of Sleep — and the Damage of Sleeping Too Little

Sleep is a biological investment with compounding returns on brain, mood, immunity, metabolism and cardiovascular safety.

Deep NREM consolidates memories and REM resets emotional load (Walker, 2017), and this dovetails with the finding that one night awake hyper-activates the amygdala and disconnects prefrontal control (Yoo, 2007), making emotional learning unstable. This emotional fragility aligns with evidence that short sleepers exposed to a cold virus adoecem mais (Prather, 2015) and that sleep loss raises IL-6 and CRP (Irwin, 2006), suggesting a unified pathway of impaired emotional regulation plus inflamação. The metabolic pathway echoes the same direction: curtailed sleep altera leptina e grelina, increasing hungry and weight (Taheri, 2004), while the autonomic pathway shows that restriction raises sympathetic tone and pressure (Czeisler, 1999). All these mechanisms converge on the population-level signal that short sleep predicts more stroke, coronary events and death (Cappuccio, 2010).

Across independent labs, populations and mechanisms, the signal is consistent: shortening sleep deteriorates health in predictable, measurable and preventable ways.

Science of Sleeping

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Reading

Sleep plays a vital role in our biological processes, and it is essential to understand why and how we sleep. Our bodies experience different stages during sleep, including Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM) and Rapid Eye Movement (REM) sleep. NREM sleep is characterized by a deeper and slower sleep, while REM sleep is marked by increased brain activity and eye movement.

Differences in Sleep Patterns between Humans and Chimpanzees

Humans and chimpanzees exhibit distinct sleep patterns and durations. Chimpanzees sleep for about 9 to 10 hours daily on average, whereas humans sleep for 7 to 8 hours. Chimpanzees have a safer sleeping environment in trees, where they are less likely to be disturbed by predators, which enables them to sleep longer without having to check for potential threats. Nevertheless, sleeping on the trees increases the risk of falling and, which may disturb sleep and reduce the overall amount of time spent asleep. These environmental factors play a crucial role in explaining the differences in sleep duration and deepness between humans and other primates.

Variety in Sleep Patterns

Individuals within a species can have different sleep patterns, providing a survival advantage by ensuring that someone is always awake and alert to potential dangers. This is known as the "sentinel hypothesis." Factors such as genetics, age, lifestyle, and overall health can influence individual sleep patterns. Some people are naturally "morning people" and feel more awake and alert in the morning, while others are "night owls" and perform better in the evening. A range of sleep patterns within a population helps increase the overall safety and survival of the group as there is always someone awake and alert to potential dangers.

Regulation of Sleep: Circadian Rhythm and Homeostatic Process

The two primary factors that regulate our sleep are the Circadian Rhythm and the Homeostatic Process. The Circadian Rhythm is our body's internal biological clock that follows a 24-hour cycle and is influenced by light and temperature exposure, helping us feel awake during the day and sleepy at night. The Homeostatic Process, on the other hand, depends on the amount of time we have been awake and the amount of sleep we have had. The longer we are awake, the stronger the drive to sleep becomes, and vice versa.

Taking a nap for 30 to 60 minutes during the mid-day can improve energy levels, mood, and alertness. It is also important to sleep enough hours during the day and wake up everyday the same hour. See the charge below to understand the sleeping cycles.

Conclusion

In conclusion, sleep is a complex and multi-faceted process that has a significant impact on our physical, mental, and emotional health. By understanding the different factors that influence sleep and making changes to improve sleep quality, we can positively impact our overall well-being.

Reference

Walker, M.P. (2017). Why We Sleep. Scribner.https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Why-We-Sleep/Matthew-Walker/9781501144318

Yoo, S-S. et al. (2007). “A deficit in the ability to form new human memories without sleep.” Nature Neuroscience, 10(3): 385-392.https://doi.org/10.1038/nn1851

Prather, A.A. et al. (2015). “Behaviorally Assessed Sleep and Susceptibility to the Common Cold.” Sleep, 38(9): 1353-1359.https://doi.org/10.5665/sleep.4968

Irwin, M.R. et al. (2006). “Partial night sleep deprivation reduces natural killer and cellular immune responses.” PNAS, 103(5): 1918-1923.https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0510074103

Taheri, S. et al. (2004). “Short sleep duration is associated with reduced leptin, elevated ghrelin, and increased BMI.” PLoS Medicine, 1(3): e62.https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0010062

Czeisler, C.A. et al. (1999). “Sleep deprivation and circadian misalignment: impacts on endocrine and cardiovascular systems.” JCEM, 84(2): 552-555.https://doi.org/10.1210/jcem.84.2.5443

Cappuccio, F.P. et al. (2010). “Sleep duration and all-cause mortality: a systematic review and meta-analysis.” Sleep, 33(5): 585-592.https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/33.5.585

Discussion Questions

1. "Should employers provide nap rooms or flexible schedules to accommodate the need for napping in the workplace?"

2. "Is it better to stick to a consistent sleep schedule or to listen to your body's natural sleep patterns and sleep when you feel tired?"

3. "Is napping a sign of laziness or a necessary tool for improving productivity and overall health?"

4. "Is it possible to train your body to function optimally with less sleep, or is adequate sleep crucial for maintaining health and well-being?"

5. "Are there negative consequences to relying too heavily on napping as a solution for sleep deprivation and fatigue?"