In our podcast with Professor Grant Schofield, we talked about why different stages of sleep are so important. He explained that deep sleep is super restorative because the glymphatic system works harder during this time to clear out brain waste and spread anti-inflammatory chemicals. If you miss out on deep sleep, you miss out on this crucial process.
We also touched on how dreaming helps with neuroplasticity, which is like organizing post-it notes in your brain. Missing this part of sleep can mess with your cognitive functions. Schofield pointed out that shift work can really harm your physical and mental health compared to having a regular sleep schedule, emphasizing the need to sync sleep with your natural body clock.
He also mentioned how light affects sleep quality. Blue light from LEDs and screens can suppress melatonin, making it harder to sleep, especially for kids. Cutting down on device use before bed can help improve sleep quality and quantity.