2009

Sleep and
Health
Ayurveda Concept of Sleep
What is sleep?
How does it occur?
What is the role of sleep in health and in the treatment of diseases?.]

[Type text]
Dr. Anantharam Sharma Page 1
Dr. Prathibha C.K
Department of Panchakarma Amrita School of Ayurveda
 Sleep and Health

S leeping For Health

What is sleep? How does it occur? What is the role of sleep in health and in the treatment of diseases?
Many attempts have been made in this direction since time immemorial. Indians had a deep and clear
idea regarding the sleep which is highly relevant in this modern era. In Ayurveda, Yoga and Upanishad
literature, sleep is considered as one of the essential function of the living organisms.

Ayurveda has recognized Nidra (Sleep) as one of the most important dimension of health associated
with happiness and good health and is an outcome of relaxed mental state. For the living beings in this
world, sleep is an essential phenomenon for maintenance and restoration of both – body and mind.

Maharshi Patanjali in yoga Sutra gives the perfect definition that – “Sleep is the mental operation having
the absence of cognition for its grasp or sleep is a state of unconsciousness, but the consciousness
remains about his own unconsciousness”.

Similarly ancient Indian sages have observed that, not only animals but plants also enjoy relaxation in
the night by closing the petals of flowers, at the time of sunset and reopening in the next morning.

Duration of sleep required varies from person to person, depending on their Prakruti (Body
Constitution), age sex etc. Ayurveda says that persons having Kapha Prakruti need more sleep, Pitta
Prakruti needs moderate and Vata Prakruti needs less sleep. Most people generally need seven to nine
hours sleep. Studies indicating that an increased risk for disease starts to kick in when people get less
than six or seven hours sleep.

What is sleep?
Sage Charaka explained that when the mind as well as soul gets exhausted and sensory and motor
organs become functionally inactive then the individual gets sleep. The modern chemical theories can be
correlated to these Ayurveda concepts to some extent.

Three Sub Pillars of Life

The great seers of Ayurveda have considered the ‘Nidra’ as one among the three sub-pillars of
life. The others are
• Aharam - Food and
• Abrahmacharyam - Healthy Sexual life

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State of mind
Yoga literatures disclose the different states of mind and understand it as,
• Jagruth - Conscious state
• Swapnam - Dreamy State
• Sushupthi - Perfect sleep

Jagruth
It is the state of mind when almost all the voluntary actions are happening. Here the person will be
conscious and both motor functions and sensory perception occur.

Swapnam
This is the state in between the conscious state and perfect sleep. In this state there will not be any sort
of sensory perceptions or motor functions, but of course subconscious mind may be getting the stimuli’s.

Sushupthi
This is also called as Nidra. It is the complete state of inactiveness of the senses. In this state both body
and mind will be in relaxed state.

Benefits of sleep
When the sleep is practiced wisely it gives many beneficial effects at the same time when it is used with
out any discrimination it produces many health hazards.

In Ayurveda literature Happiness and Un Happiness, Nourishment and emaciation, Strength and
weakness, Virility and impotency, Knowledge and ignorance (Intellect) and even Life and Death itself
are enumerated as the effect of sleep. This is found true even in the present scenario as the research
works done in the different parts of the world shows the ill effects of the loss of sleep/ improper sleep.

Sleep at the night time makes for the balance of the body constituents (Dhatusamya), alertness, good
vision, good complexion and fired digestive power.

Acharya Sushruta described that, those who take proper sleep in proper time will not suffer from
disease, the mind of them will be peaceful, they gain strength and good complexion, good virility, their
body will be attractive, they won’t be lean or fatty and they live good hundred years.

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 Sleep and Health

Sleep can be considered as a food itself and at the same time a complex process which enables the body
to feed up on its reserve energy, there by strengthening and building itself and at the same time storing
the more power. Many cases of under nourishment or malnutrition are due fundamentally to excessive
loss of sleep.

The digestion become chronically impaired through lack of rest and perfect assimilation is impossible;
thus, the body already tiered and improperly rested, becomes drawn and haggard because it is in no
condition to receive and distribute the nourishment taken to it.

In India amongst the urban population there are high increases of obesity which is inversely proportional
to the average number of hours that they are sleeping. Who sleep less than seven hours a night are
significantly more likely to be obese. This may be possible due to the changes in the hormones that
regulate appetite.

One study conducted at Italy shows that night shift work may be directly responsible for increased body
fatness and is indirectly associated with higher blood pressure levels and some features of the metabolic
syndrome.

I ntellect and sleep

For a stable mind sound sleep is necessary. Sleep influences the mental stability, intellect, Social
relations and even Perception.

Both emotion and sleep are independently known to modulate declarative memory. Sleep also facilitates
offline memory processing, resulting in superior recall the next day.

Studies show that getting five hours of sleep a night for one week induces an impairment level
equivalent to a blood alcohol level of 0.1 percent; that’s considered legally drunk in most states.

Loss of sleep, improper sleep or insufficient sleep may result in the impaired function of the intellect.
Such person feels it hard to get concentration, difficulty in taking any important decisions, loss of
memory and finds difficult to maintain a good healthy social relationships.

L ife – Death – Sleep

These three are interrelated; Ayurveda says that persons get proper sufficient sleep will have good health
and less mortality rate. On the contrary, persons who do not have proper sleep will end up with death.

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Researches has shown that People who do not get proper sleep or who shift their sleep schedules due to
work, family or lifestyle may be endangering their health, people who slept the least appeared to be
significantly more likely to die.

People who work at night appear unusually prone to breast and colon cancer. It is found exposure to
light at night reduces levels of the hormone melatonin. Melatonin is believed to protect against cancer
by affecting levels of other hormones, such as estrogen. Melatonin can prevent tumor cells from
growing.

Day Sleep
Most of the people have the habit of sleeping during the day especially an afternoon nap. Day sleep is
considered as one of the main cause for the increase of the Kapha Dosha and Medo Dhatu. It may result
in the obesity, gastric disorders and so on.

A few set of persons only are allowed to sleep during the day time like Persons emaciated due to
different causes, having indigestion, old aged, Children, Persons Having Less strength, After long travel,
Who had lost sleep last night etc.

When should one sleep?

Sleep at the end of the first one third of night is advisable means around 8pm to 10 pm is the right time
to go to bed. Similarly one should get up early in the morning (Brahma Muhurtha) which makes him
healthy.

Ayurveda preach that one should sleep in the proper time only. Insufficient sleeping and sleeping on
improper timings are likely to cause many illnesses and even death.

Improper sleep and health Hazards

Sleep is considered as one of the Natural Urge which comes by itself and guided by ones own biological
clock. Ayurveda point out few health Hazards caused due to the suppression of sleep, like Yawning,
Drowsy all the day, Body ache, head Ache and diseases of eye. That is why; our sages have advised that
a man should not suppress this natural urge.

It is said that, employees are paid more for sleeping less. Recent studies indicate, failing to get enough
sleep or sleeping at odd hours heightens the risk for a variety of major illnesses, including cancer, heart

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 Sleep and Health

disease, diabetes and obesity. One of the studies, involving more than 82,000 nurses that found an
increased risk of death among those who slept less than six hours a night.

Sleep disorders and Ayurveda

Most of the condition it is related with our lifestyle only. There are some other instances also found
where sleep related disorders are present. It is known to Ayurveda regarding the different sleep disorders
and termed under the heading Nidra Nasha, which may include sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea,
narcolepsy and chronic insomnia etc.

All these conditions can be well managed with the grace of Ayurveda. There are a wide range of time
tested therapies (both internal medications and external therapies) for the effective management of Sleep
disorders.

Conclusion
Ayurveda has recognized Nidra as one of the most important dimensions of health. The disturbance in
sleep might be related to the life style, environmental influence, mental tension, changed food habits and
day to day stress which ultimately disturb the psycho neuro biological rhythm of sleep.

Ayurveda have long known that sleep disorders, such as sleep apnea, narcolepsy and chronic insomnia,
can lead to serious health problems, and that difficulty sleeping may be a red flag for a serious illness.
Recent researches in this area prove all these facts.

Ayurveda have a definite solution for almost all the sleep disorders faced by the modern world.

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