Too little sleep can lead to dehydration



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It's perfectly normal to feel miserable after a night spent spinning or turning too late. But new research suggests that there may be more than sleep deprivation to blame: you could also be dehydrated, according to the researchers, and drinking more water could help you feel better.

The study, published this week in the journal To sleep, found that people reporting sleeping only six hours a night were between 16 and 59% more likely to be "inadequately hydrated" (based on their urine sample analyzes) than those who declared to sleep normally eight hours. American and Chinese adults participated in the research – about 25,000 people in total – and the results were consistent for both populations.

This does not mean that people who sleep less also drink less; In fact, the study's authors actually controlled total fluid consumption in some of the participants. They found that even when people reported drinking the same amount, those who slept less were more likely to have more concentrated urine and other signs of dehydration.

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So what's going on? The authors of the study claim that it is probably a hormone called vasopressin, which helps regulate the body's degree of hydration.

Vasopressin is available day and night, but production really increases later in the sleep cycle, said lead author Asher Rosinger, assistant professor of biological health and anthropology at Penn State University, in A press release. "So, if you wake up earlier, you might miss that window in which a greater amount of hormone is released, disrupting the body's hydration," he added.

The authors point out that, in previous studies, lack of sleep has been associated with chronic kidney disease and they have argued that dehydration may be an important factor in this link. Prolonged dehydration can also increase the risk of kidney stones and urinary tract infections.

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Since the study relied on self-reported sleep data and only looked at urine results at one point, it could only highlight an association. between the two, and not a cause and effect relationship. The authors should, in their article, examine this relationship over the course of a week in order to understand how people's states of hydration and sleep change each day.

The National Sleep Foundation suggests that adults sleep seven to nine hours a night and that bedtime and waking are as seamless as possible. (In this study, sleeping more than nine hours per night did not seem to have any effect, in any sense, on the state of hydration.)

Of course, you really do not need another This is why he is linked to a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, overconsumption of food, weight gain (even if it is not related to eating too much) and diabetes, to name a few. only a few. This can also cause short-term problems, such as irritability, difficulty concentrating, memory problems, and drowsiness.

But dehydration itself has also shown that it causes headaches and fatigue, as well as effects on mood, cognition, and physical performance, which can add to the already negative effects from a sleepless night, the authors said. "This study suggests that if you do not get enough sleep and feel bad or tired the next day, drink more water," Rosinger said.

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