3 Reasons Why Sleep is the Fountain of Youth
Daylight savings time is ending on Sunday November 4. This is the beginning of the hibernation season because that hour of daylight we were given in the evening will be shifted back into its morning slot. Our seven months of evening sunshine are about to be replaced with waking up to a sunrise, and a sun set around 5pm. What does that mean for you? The fountain of youth! We have found it! You get one extra hour of sleep this weekend, potentially more sleep this fall and winter, and it can change your life!
Our bodies have gotten accustomed to our 24 hour clock. When it is dark for extended periods of time, we become drowsy. Your skin regenerates when you sleep, and even starts the process when you become drowsy and melatonin is released. What happens to skin as you sleep? I’m thrilled that you asked! New cells are formed, more collagen is produced, skin tissues are repaired… your skin goes into overdrive. This week we shall discuss what sleep does for your skin and next week, how you can maximize your slumber time.
While you were Sleeping…
As you drift off to sleep, your skin has already begun its second shift. Every night faithfully it works overtime (without being paid time and a half) to undo the damage done to it during the day. On the day shift, your skin is playing defense and works to protect you from pollution, environmental toxins, the wind, and even the sun (Read more here). But it is at night that your skin becomes proactive to give you a little dose of the fountain of youth.
Cellular Repair
Have you ever heard of Human Growth Hormone (HGH)? This is what your body snaps into gear when melatonin is released. Fun fact: it is also released during exercise for muscle repair. HGH heals wounds, creates new skin cells and replaces the dead cells with new ones and it does this up to three times faster at night! Have you ever had night sweats? That is all a part of the process. Aside from repairing your skin, you body is also in overdrive at night fighting disease and keeping you healthy. Because it is working so hard, you sweat. The sweat releases toxins that you might have come in contact with during the day.
Anti-aging
As your cells are being repaired, collagen is produced in the second layer of your skin to fill it in and smooth those little dips called wrinkles that appear. Elastin then steps in to pull the skin taunt and make sure it bounces back. As we age natural collagen production slows and the wrinkles deepen, but don’t worry just yet. Check back next week for a holistic solution. Melatonin is also an antioxidant and it protects skin from free radicals that could drastically age the skin if they were given the chance to oxidize. Antioxidant= Anti-aging.
Lack of sleep is the leading cause of skin issues. Why? When you are sleep deprived, your body releases more cortisol (the stress chemical) than melatonin and it causes a lot of issues that we discussed here. Your skin is not given the proper opportunity to repair when you do not get enough sleep. If you want baby soft skin, you must do what babies do- sleep!
How much sleep do you need for beautiful skin? 7-9 hours per night is always the good answer, but studies show that your skin does all of its hard work in 4 hours between midnight and 4am. Your skin also begins to work while you are still awake. Between 10 and 11 pm when melatonin is released, your skin begins its night shift routine. The verdict: Get restful sleep. Sure your skin begins the process while you are awake, but you need at least 4 hours of deep sleep for your skin to do the heavy lifting. To properly move through the sleep cycles so that you fall into deep sleep, you need at least 6 hours each night.
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