Catching Colds When You Don’t Sleep

A lack of sleep compromises our immune systems and makes us more susceptible to colds and flu. A California Health Insurance agent is there for you so that you can sleep better.

Autumn is not only holiday season, with year-end delights beckoning,
it’s also “cold and flu” season, which fewer people choose to
celebrate. Instead of Thanksgiving turkey and yams, and Halloween
treats, think vitamin C and Echinacea. But what about sleep – not
getting enough can suppress the immune system and create a likelihood
of sickness.

As any California Health Insurance
agent can tell you, poor sleep habits and susceptibility to colds and
influenza go hand-in-hand – much like a germ-spreading handshake.
Sleep, its quantity and especially its quality, can play a role in
maintaining the body’s defenses.

In a recent study conducted by the Archives of Internal Medicine,
scientists tracked 153 men and women for a fortnight (two weeks),
monitoring the quality and duration of sleep that these experimental
subjects experienced. Next, during a five-day follow-up, the subjects
were quarantined and exposed to cold viruses. Those who slept an
average of less than seven hours a night, it transpired, were three
times more likely to become ill as those who slept for at least eight
hours.

Sleep and immunity are apparently interrelated. Studies have found
that mammals that require the most sleep also produce increased levels
of disease-fighting white blood cells, but not red blood cells -- even
though both kinds of cells are produced in bone marrow and are derived
from identical precursors.

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary
Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, have demonstrated that
“good-sleeping” species resist pathogens (germs) with a special
resilience.

California Health Insurance
agents specialize in selling customized plans that allow their
customers more sleep, as well as a better quality of REM sleep that
facilitates dreams. If it’s known that you’re not sleeping enough, run;
don’t walk, to the nearest office of a California Health Insurance
agent before you catch a cold or flu bug. Celebrating the holidays is a
lot more fun if you’re not sick – but if you do become ill, you’ll have
the right coverage.

Matt Lockard – California Health Insurance agency offers health
insurance plans for individuals, families, and children. Also available
are California Medicare Supplement policies. Go to Mattsinsurance4ca.com to get an instant health insurance quote and to learn more about California health insurance, California medicare supplements, California health insurance quotes.