Why REM sleep is important.

Introduction

The fourth stage of sleep is rapid eye movement (REM). REM sleep involves relaxed muscles, fast eye movement, erratic breathing, raised heart rate, and brain activity. The average adult needs two hours of REM sleep per night. Memory consolidation, emotional processing, brain development, and dreaming occur during REM sleep.

REM sleep is also called active, desynchronized, paradoxical, rhombencephalic, and dream sleep. Many people think REM sleep is when you dream, but it's also involved in brain development and other processes.

We analyze the complexities of REM sleep, why we need it, what happens when we don't get enough, and sleep problems related to it.

Definition of REM sleep

Dreaming during REM sleep

REM sleep is named for its fast eye movements. Dreaming and memory consolidation occur during REM sleep. Scientific studies of sleeping infants found discrete moments when their eyes moved rapidly from side to side, revealing REM sleep in the 1950s.

What happens during REM sleep?

REM sleep involves rapid eye movement, fast pulse rate, and erratic breathing.
It also involves significant brain activity and varied brain waves, unlike other stages of sleep.
Most of your body functions normally during REM sleep, although your eyes are closed and you lose muscular tone.
Researchers believe this is a precaution to prevent you from hurting yourself while pursuing your aspirations.
Since scientists now know we can dream during non-REM sleep without paralysis, this concept is becoming less popular.

Various land-based species

Many land-based species, including humans, mammals, reptiles, and birds, undergo REM sleep. Varied species have varied REM sleep patterns. Owls cannot move their eyes in their skulls; hence, they do not experience REM sleep. Some birds lose neck muscle tone only during REM sleep, so their head can rest while standing on one foot.

When does REM sleep take place?

Your first REM cycle occurs 60–90 minutes after falling asleep. A whole night's sleep cycles through three non-REM stages and one REM period.
All sleep stages require 90–120 minutes to go through. Each cycle, you spend more time in REM sleep, mostly in the second half.

Each sleep stage is different:

In Stage 1 (Light Sleep), low-amplitude mixed-frequency (LAMF) activity replaces alpha brain waves as your brain settles down. You breathe normally and have muscle tone.

Stage 2 (Light Sleep): Heart rate and body temperature drop. Sleep spindles and K-complexes, brain wave patterns, appear as you shift into deep sleep.

Stage 3: Delta waves, your brain waves, are slowest in Stage 3 (Deep Sleep). Waking from this stage is difficult and causes sleep inertia, fogginess, and cognitive impairment. Deep sleep strengthens your immune system and restores bones, muscles, and tissue.

Stage 4 (REM sleep): Brain activity is similar to that of the awake. You lose muscular tone save for your fast-moving eyes. Intermittent breathing and increased heart rate.

Sleep REM vs. Non-REM

Because it's so different from other sleep stages, REM sleep is fascinating. Your eyes don't move, brain waves are slower, and muscle tone is maintained in non-REM sleep. REM sleep can be distinguished from non-REM sleep by

Brain wave activity is more like waking than any other sleep stage.
Complete muscle tone loss vs. non-REM sleep partial tone.
The steady, slower breathing of non-REM sleep contrasted. irregular breathing
An increase in heart rate vs. non-REM sleep slowing
The ability to wake up faster than non-REM sleep

Also, read https://www.bettersleep.com/blog/rem-sleep-explained.

Why is REM sleep important?

The video explains the importance of REM sleep.

All sleep is necessary, but REM sleep is crucial for dreaming, memory, emotional processing, and brain development.

Dreaming: Most dreams occur during REM sleep. Common sleep myth: REM is not the only state where dreams occur. REM dreams are frequently more vivid than non-REM dreams.

Emotional processing: The brain processes emotions during REM sleep. More vivid REM dreams may be engaged in emotional processing. The emotional brain center, the amygdala, activates during REM sleep.

Memory consolidation: During REM sleep, your brain consolidates new day-to-day learnings and motor skills, keeping some and deleting others. Deep sleep, a non-REM period, consolidates memories.

Brain development: Since newborns spend most of their sleep in REM, researchers believe it stimulates brain growth. The fact that humans and puppies spend more time in REM sleep during infancy than horses and birds supports this theory.

Wakefulness Preparation: REM sleep activates our central nervous system, which may assist us in waking up. This may explain why we spend more time in REM sleep at night and wake up more easily.

How much REM sleep is needed?

Infants and children need the most REM sleep to build their brains. Newborns sleep eight hours a day in REM. Adults need only two hours of REM sleep per night.
Most mammals, like humans, spend more time in REM sleep as newborns than as adults. Although cats, platypuses, and ferrets spend up to eight hours a day in REM sleep, horses and elephants may survive without it.
Sleep length changes throughout your life and day-to-day based on biological and physiological needs. Your body's needs determine how long you spend in each sleep stage, including REM, each night.
Both animal and human research show enhanced REM sleep following learning. Scientists found that rats who learned a novel labyrinth slept longer in REM for nearly a week. Another study examined how sleep affected healthy college students' working memory. Napping between tests improved accuracy, and the more time students spent in REM sleep, the better.

What Happens Without Enough REM Sleep?

Multiple human and animal research studies demonstrate that REM sleep deprivation impairs memory development.
Memory issues related to REM sleep loss may be caused by total sleep disruption, which typically occurs concurrently.
Studies of the few people who don't sleep with REM demonstrate no memory or learning issues.
REM sleep loss affects brain cell growth.
The effects of REM sleep loss need further study.
Sleep deprivation is generally bad.
Sleep influences mood and immunity.
Not getting enough sleep causes sleep deprivation.

Sleep deprivation symptoms:

Trouble focusing during the day
Sleepiness during the day
Bad memory
Chronic sleep loss can cause diabetes.
Depression,
Obesity,
cardiovascular disease.

Effects of sleep deprivation

Cognitive performance suffers without enough sleep.
As sleep deprivation affects working memory, you may forget things more often.
People who sleep less than six hours a night can have the same working memory problems as those who haven't slept in two nights.
Short sleepers sleep less in REM since most of it happens in the second half.
Some anxiety and depression drugs can also inhibit REM sleep.

Sleep Disorders Related to REM

Some sleep disorders involve aberrant REM sleep.
RBD, narcolepsy, and nightmare disorder are examples.
RBD: People with RBD sometimes act out their dreams because they don't always have muscle paralysis during REM sleep.
They may shout, punch, kick, or jerk while sleeping, harming themselves or their spouse.

Narcolepsy

A brainstem malfunction that regulates REM sleep may induce RBD. RBD often precedes neurodegenerative diseases.

Patients with narcolepsy may have cataplexy while awake.
The sudden decrease of muscular tone in cataplexy is thought to be caused by falling into REM sleep from alertness.
Narcolepsy also causes daytime tiredness, interrupted REM sleep, and pre-sleep hypnagogia.
Narcolepsy may be caused by hypothalamic orexin neuron loss.
Nightmare Disorder: REM sleep causes nightmares.
A person with nightmare disorder has frequent, disturbing nightmares.
Stress, childhood trauma, and other traumatic events can cause nightmare disorder.

Central and Obstructive Sleep Apnea:

Sleep apnea problems influence REM sleep, but not only during it.
Sleep apnea causes breathing pauses.
To breathe during REM lapses, they generally switch to a lighter sleep cycle.
People with sleep apnea spend less time in REM sleep and are more sleepy during the day.

When to consult a doctor.

Consult your doctor if you suffer sleep deprivation or suspect REM sleep behavior disorder or nightmare disorder. They can diagnose your sleep disorders and create a treatment plan.

Conclusion

Think of sleep as a time for creativity, problem-solving, and learning, storing information in long-term memory for future use. As you wake up refreshed, you know you can overcome problems, have fun, and be productive. Above all, have a great day. The next time you fall asleep, realize that it's not a waste!

Vaalga Endrum