Sleep and Rest

Sleep might look like nothing is happening, but it is one of the most active and important things your body does. While you sleep, your brain processes everything you learnt during the day, your body repairs tissues, your immune system strengthens, and growth hormone is released so you can grow.

Imagine your brain is like a busy classroom at the end of the day. While you sleep, it tidies up: filing away the important things you learnt, sweeping out what you do not need, and getting ready for tomorrow. This is one reason a good night's sleep helps you remember things better.

Sleep happens in repeating cycles of about 90 minutes. In light sleep your body begins to relax. In deep sleep your body does most of its repairing and growing. In REM sleep — which stands for Rapid Eye Movement — your eyes flicker behind your eyelids and you dream. Then the cycle starts again.

What makes you feel sleepy at night? Your brain produces a hormone called melatonin when it gets dark. Melatonin is like a gentle signal telling your body it is time to wind down. As morning light appears, melatonin fades and you start to feel awake again.

A calm bedtime routine helps you drift off. Dimming the lights, switching off screens an hour before bed, having a warm bath or reading a story, and going to bed at the same time each night all tell your brain that sleep is coming. A cool, dark, quiet room helps too.

Why does it matter so much? When you do not get enough sleep, it is harder to concentrate, easier to feel grumpy, and your immune system makes fewer germ-fighting cells, so you may catch colds more easily. Good sleep really is one of the kindest things you can do for your body.