For many of us, sleep is the first thing to go when life gets hectic. Whether we’re tossing and turning, scrolling late into the night, or staying up for “just one more episode,” we’ve all sacrificed rest for the sake of time. But consistently missing sleep—whether by choice or circumstance—can do far more harm than most people realize.
Quality sleep affects nearly every aspect of our physical and mental well-being. Without it, our bodies and brains simply can’t perform at their best. Here’s why getting your sleep back on track should be at the top of your health to-do list.
1. Good Sleep Prevents Weight Gain
Did you know that getting less than 7 hours of sleep a night is linked to greater odds of becoming overweight? When you aren’t getting enough sleep, your body’s ability to produce essential hunger-related hormones is altered. Those hormones–ghrelin and leptin–are responsible for regulating your appetite, producing understandable hunger and fullness cues. With those ratios skewed, you will feel hungrier during your waking hours, causing you to eat more than what is actually needed for bodily function.
Additionally, (though it may go without saying) if you’re not sleeping enough, you won’t have the energy or motivation to move during the day. You’ll be less likely to exercise and be exhausted quickly if you do decide to hit the gym, promoting a cycle of under-sleeping, over-eating, and not getting enough movement to support the intake. What’s more, a fatigued frontal lobe (something that happens if you don’t sleep) impedes your ability to make decisions with your future self in mind. Scientifically, you’re more reactive and pleasure-seeking, making cravings more difficult to resist and your couch more difficult to leave.
So, while it might sound counterintuitive, in order to maintain a healthy weight, you need to be still on schedule. Taking those 7-9 hours each night to be intentionally sedentary, restoring your brain and body with sleep, is critical.
2. Good Sleep Improves Concentration & Productivity
Lack of proper rest doesn’t just make you groggy—it can dull your thinking and hurt your memory. In the words of Alexa Fry of the Sleep Foundation, “Without sleep, the pathways in the brain that allow you to learn and make memories can’t be formed or maintained.” In more scientific terms, when you’re not sleeping enough, neurological damage is done to the hippocampus, the part of the brain associated with retaining new information and being able to recall it. Suddenly, completing short-term memory tasks like chores, note-taking, or fast-paced office work become much more difficult, your brain unable to remember why you pulled out your cleaning rag, started a new bullet point, or began dialing your co-worker.
The hippocampus is also responsible for mapping your environment (spatial awareness or spatial memory), coming up with the proper words for you to say when its time for you to respond (verbal memory), emotional regulation associated with memory (“I felt fear the last time I did XYZ, so I’m not going to do that again,” or “I remember XYZ was joyful experience, so I’m going to do that again…”), recalling experiences and relevant facts, and anything and everything to do with learning.
In short: if you’re battling brain fog, running into things, jumbling tour words, and “why did I walk into this room?” episodes—getting the proper amount of sleep could be the fix!
3. Good Sleep Maximizes Physical Ability
Here’s something all athletes know: sleep matters for how your body moves. Though it comes as no surprise, studies run on college athletes who increased their sleep showed improved speed, accuracy, mood, and recovery.
But getting good sleep isn’t just for the pros. Non-athletes should be concerned about sleep affecting their physical function too. According to the Sleep Foundation, when the body is asleep, it produces hormones called cytokines which help bolster the immune system and stave off infections. By getting enough sleep, not only will you be illness-proofing yourself, you’ll be able to react more quickly, your coordination will improve, and you’ll generally be less fatigued (and therefore, less miserable) going about your daily life. In fact, research has revealed that chronic lack of sleep is associated with increased physical injuries.
And no wonder! If you’re off your game, you won’t be able to enjoy playtime with your kids or grandkids, catch the glass jar of pasta sauce as it rolls off the counter and onto the hard tile floor, or, heaven forbid, tap the brakes of your car in time when someone comes to a dead stop in front of you. Without sleep, you put yourself at risk, not only for illness, injury, and immobility, but catastrophe!
4. Good Sleep Lowers Risk for Chronic Diseases
Sleep isn’t just about tomorrow—it’s about the decades ahead. Studies show that less than 7 hours of sleep nightly is associated with higher risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, certain cancers, Alzheimer’s and other neurogenerative diseases, and overall mortality. In fact, in 2022, the American Heart Association updated it’s “Life’s Essential 7” to “Life’s Essential 8” to include healthy sleep as a core pillar of cardiovascular health, recommending at least 7 hours of restful sleep a night, and even more for children, in order to avoid heart disease. One not so fun fact: heart disease has been the leading cause of death in the United States since 1921. That’s over 100 years spent fighting this particular killer, and we’re still losing the battle.
Perhaps proper sleep is part of the cure.
In case you needed any more proof, one meta-analysis found that people sleeping less than 6 hours were about 20–32% more likely to develop high blood pressure compared with those sleeping 7–8 hours. So every hours counts!
Furthermore, getting enough sleep is also a major component of mental health–and it goes far beyond morning-after grouchiness. “It’s becoming clear that sleep and mood have a bidirectional relationship,” claims Andrea Goldstein-Piekarski of the Computational Psychiatry, Neuroscience, and Sleep Laboratory at Stanford. Meaning: sleep and mood influence each other continuously, and often without us realizing it. Research shows that people who experience insomnia are 10 times more likely to develop depression and 17 times more likely to develop anxiety than the average population. On the other hand, mental health disorders like these can make sleep close to impossible (or even make you hypersomnolent, which is unhealthy for other reasons).
In short: getting 7-9 hours of sleep a night can spare you from dangerous diseases–diseases that isolate, distress, and kill every single day.
Your Simple Sleep Health Checklist
To protect your body, brain, and future self:
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Schedule 7–9 hours of sleep most nights. Yes, schedule it! Treat rest like any other essential appointment. Making a plan (even writing it down) will help you stay accountable. For bonus points, jot down how you feel after a full night’s rest so you can track your progress over time.
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Keep a consistent bedtime and wake time (yes, even on weekends). It’s tempting to snag an extra hour of “me time” at night or sleep in on Saturday, but consistency is key. Humans are cyclical creatures–our bodies naturally crave routine and rhythm, and so it will be easier for your body to kick off when it’s supposed to if you commit to a snooze shift.
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Limit screens and bright light 30–60 minutes before bed. Our smart devices keep the modern world running, and so while they may have a place in your bedtime routine (as a sleep aid, white noise machine, alarm clock, etc.), it’s imperative to know when to put it down. Much of the content you consume on your phone is engineered to keep you scrolling, and your circadian rhythm will be confused by the bright light, tricking your body into believing it’s daytime. Try setting your phone aside for the night long before you go to sleep—out of reach—and see how much deeper you rest.
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Create a restful environment: cool, dark, quiet. Even small disruptions—like streetlights, temperature swings, or neighborhood noise—can interrupt deep sleep without you realizing it. If you’re waking up groggy, consider adjusting your setup. A fan, blackout curtains, eye mask, or white noise machine can make a surprising difference.
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Avoid heavy meals, caffeine, and alcohol close to bedtime. There is a time and a place for supping, sipping, and stimulants. Give yourself a few hours of digestion and detox time before turning in.
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TREAT 7-9 HOURS OF SLEEP AS ESSENTIAL, NOT OPTIONAL. If you’re doing all the right things and still struggling to rest, reach out to a trusted physician to help uncover the root cause.
Bottom Line
Sleep isn’t a “nice to have”—it’s a foundation. Your mood, decision-making, bodily functions, and even your lifespan lean on the hours you spend resting. So if you’ve been skimping on sleep, it’s time for a priority shift. Your future self will thank you.
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This article was updated on 10/22/25.