What are the habits of those who do live longer and remain happy and meaningfully productive for longer? What are the signs to watch out for that maybe now is the time to start taking control rather than continue to rely on your body's and mind's good luck? What clues are there that the fad you're reading about is snake-oil quackery?
“Sleep is a waste of time.” – Thomas Edison (Inventor of the lightbulb, possibly the single item most responsible for messing up our Circadian Rhythms.)
Nah.
Though researchers don’t know the exact mechanism, it seems that chronic lack of sleep causes inflammation, elevates blood pressure and heart rate, and affects glucose levels, leading to a much higher stroke risk in the sleep-deprived. Sleep increases the ability of the four main healthy lifestyle habits (a healthy diet, exercise, moderate alcohol consumption and not smoking) to protect the body against cardiovascular disease.
So, what can we do...?
Poor sleep can increase your risk of a stroke by 400%. Ineffective sleep makes you less productive immediately, not at 3pm the next day. If you pour red bull into your laptop, it doesn't work as well. The same goes for your body and brain.