- There are numerous reasons why sleeping
is many people's favorite activity.
This peaceful part of our day or night, rather,
it is vital for both our physical and mental wellbeing.
It's a state of mind when we can dream, relax,
restore our energy, etc.
We often tend to think of our slumber
as a very inactive and quiet activity,
but as you'll see in this video today,
that's not true at all.
You'll be surprised to learn
how many things are actually going on in our bodies
when we are having a doze.
You don't need to worry, though.
All the things are totally normal,
helping your body to work properly once you're awake again.
As long-term sleep deprivation can have devastating effects
on your health,
it's important to understand and appreciate your sleep.
After all, we spend a whole 1/3 of our lives sleeping.
Therefore, today's video with things your body does
while you sleep might come in handy,
as it'll help you better understand what's going on
in our body while we slumber away.
From bruxism and sleepwalking to exploding head syndrome
and sleep apnea, here are 25 things your body does
while you sleep.
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25, as most of our muscles become inactive during sleep,
the body burns fewer calories than during the day.
So the body's temperatures drop.
Scientists have figured out
that your body temperature is usually lowest
at around 2:30 a.m.
24, though covered with your eyelids,
your eyes move during sleep.
In fact, their movement even differs
with the particular stages of sleep.
First they roll,
and later on when we get into a deeper sleep,
they twitch and dart about.
However, we usually don't remember this.
23, sudden twitches and hypnic jerks are mostly associated
with the first stages of sleep.
They're usually harmless,
but they might be strong enough to actually wake you up.
22, there's a good reason why most
of your muscles become paralyzed during sleep.
If they were active, you'd be able to act out your dreams,
which would be, of course, extremely dangerous.
21, the top layer of the skin is made
of closely packed dead cells,
which are constantly shed during the day.
During sleep, the skin's metabolic rate speeds up,
and many of the body's cells show increased production
and reduced breakdown of proteins.
As proteins are needed for cell growth and damage repair
from factors like UV rays,
deep sleep may, indeed, be beauty sleep.
20, we take in all this information all day long,
and most of it is luckily forgotten,
says sleep specialist Christopher Cowell
at UCLA School of Medicine.
If you remembered everything, it would fill up your brain.
So a sorting process takes place during sleep.
19, unlike most other muscles,
throat muscles do not become paralyzed
and are needed for us to breathe.
However, they are more relaxed,
causing the throat to narrow.
This might also help contribute to snoring.
18, during slow wave sleep,
the human body secretes bursts of growth hormones
that stimulate growth, cell reproduction,
and cell regeneration.
All sleep, even during the day,
is associated with secretion of prolactin,
an important regulator of the immune system.
17, one study showed that people who received flu shots
and were sleep deprived the next night did not create
the antibodies required to protect against the flu.
Therefore, if you notice the first signs of an infection,
try to sleep as long as you can
to give your immune system time to beat the illness.
16, while sleeping, you lose water
through perspiring and breathing out human air.
This happens during the day, too,
but eating and drinking negates any weight loss.
Therefore, having a good and long sleep is necessary
for any diet to be successful.
You can trust me on that one.
That's coming for me.
15, as saliva is mostly needed for eating,
and we don't eat while sleeping,
the salivary flow is reduced at night.
Consequently, you might have dry mouth
and be thirsty when you wake up in the morning.
14, it's estimated that about 5% of people suffer
from a bizarre condition known as sleep bruxism.
This para-functional activity manifests itself
by excessive teeth grinding and may eventually lead
to damage of the teeth.
Scientists aren't sure what exactly causes this condition,
but they believe it might be a form of stress relieving.
13, it's been discovered that people can be
up to several centimeters taller
in the morning than they are in the evening.
While sleeping in a horizontal position,
your spine extends as the weight
of your body doesn't press down on it.
12, when sleeping, you experience
what is known as nocturnal dipping of your blood pressure.
If you're otherwise fit, your blood pressure can drop
by about five to seven points with a good night's sleep.
11, scientifically known as parasomnias,
sleepwalking and other mid-sleep activities
include behaviors, emotions, perceptions,
and dreams that usually occur during the transitions
between some of the sleep stages.
Parasomnias are mostly harmless,
but there have been cases when people injured themselves
while sleepwalking.
10, both men and women might get sexually stimulated
while sleeping.
As your brain is more active during sleep,
it requires more oxygen.
As a result, blood flow all over the body increases,
causing the swelling of the genitalia.
Nine, the content and purpose
of dreams are not fully understood,
but it is known
that an average person has three to five dreams per night.
Dreams mainly occur in the first stage of sleep,
when your brain is the most active.
However, most dreams are immediately or quickly forgotten,
and yet, all of you in the comments section will now tell me
that you don't dream.
Eight, a recent study has found
that the brain can process information
and prepare for actions during sleep,
effectively making decisions while unconscious.
In fact, your brain can even make important connections
and discoveries while you're dozing.
Seven, you won't be happy to hear this,
but during the night,
your anal sphincter muscles loosen slightly,
making it easier for the gases in your intestines to go out.
The good news is that your and everyone else's sense
of smell is reduced while sleeping.
So your farts will probably go unnoticed during the night.
Six, getting rid of toxins allows your body
and brain to rejuvenate.
In people who don't sleep well,
the filtration isn't as effective.
So experts say that may help explain
why people who are sleep deprived can go a little crazy.
Five, scientific studies have found
that people wake up many times while sleeping,
but these awakening are so brief
that we don't remember them.
They usually occur during the transition periods
between different sleep stages.
Four, millions of people all over the world suffer
from a sleep disorder known as sleep apnea.
The disorder is characterized by pauses in breathing
or instances of shallow breathing during sleep.
Each pause can last
for a few seconds or even several minutes.
Three, exploding head syndrome is a rare benign condition,
in which a person hears loud, imagined noises,
such as a bomb exploding, a gunshot, or a symbol crash,
or experiences an explosive feeling
when falling asleep or waking up.
It's painless but frightening for the sufferer.
Two, sleep talking is a parasomnia
that refers to talking aloud while asleep.
It can be quite loud,
ranging from simple mumbling sounds too loud shouts
and long, frequently inarticulated speeches.
It can occur many times during a sleep cycle.
One, when your body is totally relaxed
to the point of being paralyzed,
the nerves can't receive pain signals
and report those signals to the brain.
This is also why we don't hear, smell, see,
or feel well during sleep.
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