Sleep helps your brain work optimally. Studies show that a good night's sleep improves learning. Whether you're learning math, how to play the piano, sleep helps enhance your learning and problem- solving skills. Sleep also helps you pay attention, make decisions, and be creative.
Sleep plays an important role in your physical health. For example, sleep is involved in healing and repair of your heart and blood vessels. Ongoing sleep deficiency is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, kidney disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, and stroke.
Sleep deficiency also increases the risk of obesity. For example, one study of teenagers showed that with each hour of sleep lost, the odds of becoming obese went up.