Book Report

Why We Sleep by Matthew Walker was written to inform its readers about sleep and its effect on people. There are 4 parts to this book with 16 total chapters. Each part provides different topics about what it is, why you should sleep, how dreaming works, and society's impact. Sleep influences cognitive performance, learning, memory, and mental and physical health. 

My favorite part was learning about sleep deprivation and the brain in chapter 8. Walker pointed out that most diseases were caused by a lack of sleep. Getting a poor night's rest may weaken your immune system, making it easier to get sick and catch infections. A person is also at risk for cancers, growing tumors, and heart diseases or attacks, if they do not get the proper amount of sleep. 

Lack of sleep can cause weight gain by increasing appetite and food consumption while decreasing fullness or satisfaction. It can also cause poor mental health conditions like depression and anxiety. In the food lecture slides, the more stressed a person is, the more they will eat. The more you eat while sleep deprived, the more weight gain and unhealthy choices you might make. Being sleep deprived may cause you to be less physically active, also affecting your weight.

What I learned from this book is that sleep is very important for everyone. Sleeping is what makes learning beneficial, creates good decision-making, keeps emotions in check, and helps memory do its thing. I also learned that both under sleeping and over sleeping are bad for your health, and to stop both from happening, create a sleep schedule, no caffeine, exercise, and a little sunlight exposure helps too.