How Sleep Affects the Brain

Savannah Moua

Mt. San Antonio College

Biological Psychology

M/W 9:45-11:10

Dr. John Pellitteri

 How Sleep Affects the Brain

There are some different theories that explain why sleep is so beneficial for our physical

and psychological health. The first theory, the restorative theory of sleep, explains that sleep is

to help restore the physiological body and the mind. The second theory, the circadian theory of

sleep, suggests that sleep evolved to help keep humans away from the dangers that lurk through

night (Kalat, 2015). As we learn more and more about the importance of sleep, researchers have

found that when one is asleep, the “brain activation reflects the information processing of stimuli

that were encountered during the previous day or days, and also prepares the brain for optimal

information processing the next day” (Cronin-Golumb, 2016). There have been research studies

that show that sleep deprivation heavily affects the functions controlled by the prefrontal cortex,

such as working memory (Verweij et al., 2014). Sleep heavily influences brain reactivity and is

therefore a given that it is important and necessary for optimal brain usage.

Verwij, Remijn, Smit, Piantoni, Van Someren, and Van Der Werf (2014) conducted a

study on whether sleep and sleep deprivation might differently affect subsequent connectivity

characteristics in different brain regions. There were a total of 8 healthy participants which

included 5 males and 3 females. They gave reports of “no sleep complaints, smoking, use of

medication and neurological or psychiatric disorders” (Verweij et al., 2014). The participants

were asked to keep a normal sleep pattern journal a week prior to the experiment and to refrain

from caffeine or alcohol 12 hours before and during the experiment. This study “…involved

EEG measurements during a series of visual-motor computer tasks following resting-state EEG

measurements” (Verweij et al., 2014). It consisted of two days with an interval of two night’s

normal sleep in between. Before each day of the experiment, the participants had either a normal

night of sleep or total sleep deprivation that was recorded and verified with actigraphy and a

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sleep diary (Verweij et al., 2014). The researchers hypothesized that sleep deprivation has effects

on brain functional networks. Verwij et al. (2014) not only found that total sleep deprivation

does alter brain functional connectivity in a topographically specific way, but that it most

affected functional connectivity involving the prefrontal areas of the brain. The conclusion of

this experiment relates back to the restorative theory of sleep because it states that a function of

sleep may be to bring the prefrontal brain network to a state of homeostasis that will allow for

better cognitive performance (Verwij et al., 2014).

A lack of sleep or sleep deprivation can also heavily influence a person’s behavior in

everyday life. A person that acquires little or no sleep may be more irritable and impatient with

others. Garbarino, Sannita, and Falkenstein (2017) have stated that there is a connection between

one’s level of stress and his or her complaints of poor sleep and that one’s sleep quality and work

efficiency are related. The less sleep or poorer quality of sleep one receives can lead to problems

in their work community. The reason being that the body and the mind need sleep to rejuvenate

and prepare for the next day’s tasks. Without proper rest, poor work and poor attitudes will be

the outcome. There are statistics that show that “occupational injuries are a major problem

worldwide and impaired efficiency at work is a costly burden on workers, healthcare systems,

and employers” (Garbarino et al., 2017). Inadequate sleep can lead to injuries and accidents

within the work environment. Those who work in the medical field and receive little sleep are

more prone to errors and could put patients in potential dangers. Lack of sleep does not only

affect those in work environments, it affects everyone in everyday situations, some of which can

be very dangerous. For example, someone driving a car. If a person who is deprived of a proper

night’s sleep is on the road, they are susceptible to causing or being in an accident. It was found

that 50% of drivers that survive motor collisions had at least one sleep-related risk factor and that

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8.9% of drivers reported having at least one incident of fatigue at the wheel that forced them to

pull over (Garbarino et al., 2017). It is obvious that sleep is very important for humans to

function properly and with our best abilities.

There of been studies that have identified mechanisms in which sleep interacts with

learning, memory and other cognitive processes (Cronin-Golumb, 2016). There are two different

types of sleep: REM and NREM sleep. In one night’s sleep, a person will go through a 90-

minute cycle in which he or she will alternate between REM and NREM sleep (Kalat, 2015).

There is evidence that learning and memory processing is dependent on sleep. There have been

demonstrations supporting that “learning on a visual texture discrimination task, … does not

benefit from 4-12 hour of [being] awake following acquisition [but] improves significantly

following a night of sleep” (Walker et al., 2004). Sleep allows people to process and properly

store information that they have learned throughout the day. Throughout the day, there are times

where fatigue takes over and a nap is needed to rejuvenate and to stay alert through the rest of

the day. It has been suggested that taking a “20-minute power nap” is recommended, when in

fact 60-90 minute naps can produce enhancements equivalent to a normal night of sleep (Walker

et al., 2004). During these 60-90 minute naps, the person can go through a cycle of REM and

slow-wave sleep (SWS). SWS occurs during the deepest stages of NREM and reflects the

occurrence of low-frequency waves (Walker et al., 2004).

There have been findings that show that sleep deprivation can interfere with the retention

of motor tasks. Walker et al.(2004), states that the night following new training is critical for

performance improvements to develop. After learning a new motor skill, it is important to sleep

because while one sleeps, the brain takes new information and stores it so that it is easily

accessible for when the same motor skill is needed again. The findings were that the

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“mechanisms of sleep-dependent learning were dissociable from those of initial practice-

dependent learning, highlights the idea that there are different parts of the brain for different

memory stages” (Walker et al., 2004).

Sleep is very important to our everyday lives. Sleep allows us to restore our body and

mind and prepare for what is ahead the next day. Our brains take in the information acquired

throughout the day or days and stores it in places that is easily accessible for us when needed.

There have been many studies and experiments that support the restorative theory of sleep. It has

been shown that a lack of sleep can physically alter our brain’s neural networks. Inadequate

amount of sleep can also be dangerous because it can cause poor efficiency in a workplace that

can put many people in danger. There has also been research to support that sleep is needed not

only for our learning and memory processes, but also for our ability to retain motor tasks. Sleep

is important because it allows our bodies to rest and our minds to restore and prepare for what

lies ahead in the brand new day.

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 References

Cronin-Golomb, A. (2016). Great Nature’s Second Course: Introduction to the Special Issue on

the Behavioral Neuroscience of Sleep. Behavioral Neuroscience, 130(3), 267-270.

Garbarino, S., Sannita, W. G., & Falkenstein, M. (2017). Inadequate Sleeping Impairs Brain

Function and Aggravates Everyday’s Life: A Challenge for Human

Psychophysiology? Journal of Psychophysiology, 31(3), 91-93.

Kalat, J.W. (2015). Biological Psychology. New York: Cengage.

Verweij, I. M., Romeijn, N., Smit, D. J. A., Piantoni, G., Van Someren, E.,J.W., & Van Der

Werf, Y.,D. (2014). Sleep Deprivation Leads to a Loss of Functional Connectivity in Frontal

Brain Regions. BMC Neuroscience, 15, 88.

Walker, M. P., & Stickgold, R. (2004). Sleep-Dependent Learning and Memory Consolidation.

Neuron, 44(1), 121-133.