What is Your Sleep IQ?

By: Red Hot Mamas

Published: June 18, 2014

Are you having difficulty sleeping? Do you know the health risks if you are? In this article, I talk about sleep to help you determine your sleep IQ. Check it out and let me know what you think in the comments.

People who sleep less weigh less.

True
False

False. People who get too little sleep produce less of a hormone called leptin that lets you know you are full, and more of a hormone called ghrelin that causes you to want to eat more. Basically, getting too little sleep can promote weight gain by making it hard to diet.

Too little sleep increases your risk of diabetes?

True
False

True. Too little sleep can be one of the causes of diabetes. People with diabetes who have high blood sugar levels urinate more at night and don’t sleep well. High glucose levels are excreted through the kidneys, which increases urine volume. That causes the person to wake up at night.

On the flip side, too little sleep causes your body to become more resistant to insulin, the hormone responsible for getting glucose from the bloodstream into the cells. The increased weight also contributes to pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes.

Too little sleep can increase your risk of Heart Disease.

True
False

True. Studies have shown that people with high blood pressure that get too little sleep for even one night causes an elevated blood pressure throughout the following day. In essence, lack of sleep is one of the causes of high blood pressure. This may be why poor sleep is associated with cardiovascular disease and stroke.

One study found that sleeping too little (less than six hours) or too much (more than nine hours) increased the risk of coronary heart disease in women. Poor sleep also promotes calcium buildup in the arteries of the heart and that can lead to plaque that can break off and cause heart attacks or strokes.

Poor sleep has no affect on your mood.

True
False

False. Poor sleep can have a major negative affect on your mood. Effects of poor sleep include worsening your learning, memory and insight.

Poor sleep makes chronic pain worse.

True
False

True. If you have chronic pain or fibromyalgia, getting enough sleep will lower your pain.

Now that you’ve got a high Sleep IQ, it’s time to focus more on getting more sleep. To help you sleep better, I’ve created a 3 CD set of music called Sleep and Relax. Click here to preview the music or to order.