REM Sleep: Importance and Effects on Health

Just like nutrition and hydration, sleep is a necessary part of living a healthy life. Sleep gives your mind and body a chance to rest, repair, and prepare for the day ahead.

Medical professionals and sleep specialists have identified four stages of sleep, with each stage characterized by different levels and types of brain activity. These stages are identified as rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-REM (NREM) sleep. NREM sleep makes up the first three stages of the sleep cycle:

• NREM stage 1 includes the transition into sleep and is the lightest stage of sleep, totaling roughly 5% of your sleeping time.
• NREM stage 2 is where you spend 45% of your sleeping time. Brain waves slow, with short bursts of increased activity as your brain begins to sort through memories of the previous day.
• NREM stage 3 is when deep sleep occurs, and it’s an important time for your body. The body conducts needed repairs, especially those important for immune and nervous system health.

While the majority of your sleep time is spent in these stages, a quarter of your sleep is spent in the fourth stage: REM sleep. During this stage, your brain becomes very active, similar to the level of activity during waking hours. As you move through the REM stage, your brain is hard at work processing your emotional experiences and memories from that day. This stage is vital for rest and repair.

Characteristics of REM Sleep

When you transition from NREM sleep to REM sleep, your body and brain begin to function differently. During NREM sleep, brain waves slow as the body moves into deep sleep. However, the shift to REM sleep brings key changes to brain activity and leads to mixed-frequency brain waves.

These mixed-frequency waves are very similar to the waves emitted by the brain when awake. To keep you safe and sound in your bed, the body’s muscle tone and reflexes diminish during REM sleep, limiting movement in response to increased brain activity and dreams.

While most physical movement is limited during REM, eye movement is heavily increased. This eye movement is connected to the brain’s processing of dreams and memories. As your dream self moves through the world of your dreams, your sleeping eyes move in response.

Why Is REM Sleep Important?

REM sleep plays a key role in memory consolidation, emotional regulation, and learning. The wakeful brain brings in a great deal of stimuli, and sleep provides a space for the brain to sort through these stimuli and incorporate them into long-term memory storage.

A disrupted sleep cycle and a lack of REM sleep can seriously impact your emotional and psychological health. Studies have shown that limited REM sleep specifically impacts the brain’s ability to consolidate positive memories and emotions, leading to an increased risk of mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety.

Deep Sleep vs. REM Sleep

Deep sleep and REM sleep are often confused or meshed together in conversation, however, these two types of sleep are drastically different from each other.

While REM sleep is characterized by high levels of brain activity and varied brain waves, the deep sleep that occurs before REM sleep is characterized by low, steady, delta brain waves. This coordination, originating in the frontal lobe, allows the lymphatic system to clear the brain of plaques and proteins that contribute to conditions such as Alzheimer's.

The body strives to achieve a balance between deep NREM sleep and REM sleep. This balance leads to high-quality sleep and optimal health benefits.

Memory Consolidation During REM Sleep

Extensive medical studies support the notion that sleep is essential for memory. REM sleep helps the memories of the hippocampus to be stored in the brain's long-term storage systems.

When it comes to sleep and memory consolidation, sleep deprivation has been shown to negatively impact an organism’s ability to store new information and apply learned behaviors in the long term. While NREM sleep assists with memory by allowing separate parts of the brain to communicate, you need REM sleep to learn new tasks and skills.

Emotional Regulation and REM Sleep

REM sleep helps the brain to store memories, but it also helps with the processing of emotional experiences. Mental health conditions, such as post-traumatic stress disorder, can be worsened by maladaptive memory processing during REM sleep.

Memory consolidation and emotional processing after a traumatic event can impact the brain’s ability to differentiate between safety and danger, causing long-term mental health struggles.

How Sleep Patterns Affect Overall Health

Disrupted sleep patterns can cause adverse effects on both physical health and mental health. The effects of sleep disruption include:

• Increased risk of developing depression and anxiety;
• Memory deficits;
• Worsened symptoms of gastrointestinal conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome;
• Accelerated tumor growth in cancer patients;
• Metabolic and hormonal imbalances that can increase the risk of conditions such as obesity and diabetes.

Building healthy sleep habits and increasing REM sleep can help you avoid the negative impacts of sleep disruption.

How To Get More REM Sleep

There are several lifestyle changes you can make to improve your sleep hygiene and experience more REM sleep, including:

• Limiting caffeine, tobacco, and alcohol intake;
• Avoiding phone and computer screens in the evenings;
• Eating a magnesium-rich diet;
• Introducing more exercise to your weekly routine;
• Developing a sleep routine with a set bedtime, a cool and dark space, and a relaxing atmosphere.

The goal of each of these actions is to improve sleep quality and your chances of experiencing the REM stage of sleep throughout the night.

Common Disorders Affecting REM Sleep

Several common disorders disrupt REM sleep, including:

Sleep Apnea

This disorder causes a startling symptom: a halt in breathing activity when sleeping. Symptoms of sleep apnea include loud snoring, gasping for air, dry mouth, and episodes of stopping and restarting breath while sleeping.

Sleep apnea may be caused by relaxed throat muscles that block the airway or a disruption in the signals sent by the brain that control breathing. Treatments for sleep apnea include the use of airway pressure devices, surgical tissue removal, and nerve stimulation.

REM Sleep Behavior Disorder

During REM sleep, most people experience diminished muscle tone and reflexes. This prevents the body from acting out the dreams that occur during REM sleep. However, individuals with REM sleep behavior disorder exhibit dream-enacting behavior, making loud sounds and violent movements, sometimes even acting out their dreams as they happen.

This condition may lead to injuries in the individual and their sleeping partner. Treatments include medications and supplements such as melatonin and physical changes such as additional padding in the area surrounding the bed.

Individuals struggling with these conditions should consult reputable sources and medical professionals to learn about treatment options.

Disclaimer:

The information provided on this website is for general informational purposes only. It is not intended as medical advice and should not be used as a substitute for professional consultation, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor or emergency services immediately.