5 Things you shouldn’t do when you’re sleep deprived

We’ve all had bad nights of sleep and felt drained the next day. For some people, lack of sleep is a lifestyle, one that increases the risk for heart attack, stroke and early death. Researchers found that after 17 hours straight being awake, the ability to think, learn and perform tasks requiring skills such as movement, coordination and speed are impaired as much as they would be by a blood alcohol level of 0.05 percent.

There are certain things you shouldn't do on lack of sleep. Here are five.

1. Don’t: Speak your mind

 “When you’re sleep deprived, the emotional areas of your brain are over reactive, and the control or executive area of the brain is under reactive,” says Kelly Glazer Baron, PhD, director of the Behavioral Sleep Medicine Program at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University in Chicago. The result: You may have a stronger emotional reaction to things that happen to you.

2. Don’t: Drive 

Each year, drowsy drivers cause an estimated 5,000 to 6,000 fatal crashes. Being tired affects your ability to concentrate, make decisions and react quickly — all essential skills for safe driving. When you’re sleep deprived, you may even nod off for brief periods while you’re behind the wheel, adds Baron. If you’ve ever been driving and found yourself wondering how you got from point A to point B, it may be that drifted off for a few seconds.

3. Don’t: Make an important decision 

“It can be tough to evaluate pros and cons when you aren’t thinking clearly,” says Harris. Also, being tired may skew the way you view a decision. Duke University researchers have reported that sleep-deprived people are more optimistic about decisions they make, especially when it comes to money, and less likely to consider the negative consequences.

4. Don’t: Try to learn something new 

Especially something risky that requires concentration, physical prowess or a steady hand. If you can barely keep your eyes open, it’s possible you won’t be able to focus on what you’re doing. If you’re in a cycle of getting inadequate sleep, keep in mind too that even if you do attend a class or other activity where new information is presented if you don’t sleep well the night after you won’t retain much of it. “Sleep is important for the consolidation of new memories,” explains Baron.

5. Don’t: Multi-task

Even under the best of circumstances, doing too much at once is tough. Switching from one task to another when you’re sleep-deprived ups the likelihood that you’re going to make a mistake. The frontal lobe of the brain isn’t as active when you’re pooped: Do not chop onions while helping your kid with his math. Put down the sharp knife until the child can calculate the perimeter of a circle on his own.

Article courtesy of http://www.safebee.com