Do you feel tired, weary, and worn out? Is your brain in a fog and your body in a funk? Has your “get-up-and-go” got up and gone? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you just might be sleep-deprived. That’s not good for your health or your appearance.

Before humans invented the light bulb and the kerosene lamp, we went to sleep when the sun went down and woke when the sun came up, averaging around ten hours of sleep a night. And you know what? People were much healthier then. Many of today’s modern diseases did not exist. That’s because sleep is your body’s best medicine and the single most important ingredient to a healthy life; more important than nutrition, exercise, or drugs..

Your body grows, repairs, and regenerates when you sleep. Illness can be healed with enough deep, restful sleep. Throw some juicing and a healthy diet in there and you’ll become virtually indestructible.

In the old days, doctors didn’t prescribe drugs. They advised their patients to get more rest and often sent them to sanitariums to recover. Thirty days of bed rest and walking has cured more people than drugs ever will.

Would you like healthier, more vibrant skin? Try sleeping more. The more you sleep, the more collagen your skin produces. Start getting more sleep and your skin will glow with beauty and vitality. As others age, you’ll be growing younger. Where do you think the expression “beauty sleep” comes from?

Are you looking to build muscle, lose fat, or improve your physical appearance? More sleep just might be the key to achieving your goals. Sleep is a natural alternative to steroids. As anyone who exercises knows, your muscles don’t grow when you’re exercising, they grow when you’re resting – or more specifically – when you’re sleeping. When you sleep, your body produces growth hormone and melatonin. Serious strength-training athletes wouldn’t think about getting less than nine hours of sleep each night.

Vince Gironda, the legendary “Iron Guru”, was one of bodybuilding’s most successful trainers. He advised his trainees to take a thirty-minute nap after each exercise session. His results speak for themselves.

Having trouble getting it up? Drop the Viagra and take a nap. Sleep is good for your sex drive. When a man sleeps, his body produces testosterone. Cut down on your sleep and you’ll be lowering your testosterone level. Add an unhealthy diet to the mix, and you’ll soon be looking, talking, and acting like a soyboy.

Do you have trouble falling asleep at night? One of the best solutions that I’ve ever found is to eliminate all noise thirty minutes before your planned bedtime. No talking, no music, no television or internet, no nothing. Just complete silence. Doing so will quiet your mind and allow you to fall asleep quickly and peacefully. If you have children, this will do wonders to quiet them down and send them to bed.

It also helps to make your bedroom as pleasant as possible. Keep it spotlessly clean and free of clutter. Use cotton sheets and pillowcases. If you can afford mattresses made without synthetic chemicals, even better. If your neighbours are noisy, get yourself a box fan and let it run while you sleep. The sound of the fan will drown out the distracting noise from outside.

If you’re on a challenging work schedule, do the best you can. Sleep as much as possible on your off days. Eliminating useless activities from your life will free you up for more time to sleep. Do you really need to stay up late watching unfunny comedians hosting unfunny talk shows? Is Netflix or that latest piece of Hollywood trash really worth your time? Trust me, you won’t be missing anything by skipping them. You can dream a better movie than anything that’s being put out by Hollywood today.

Don’t skimp on your sleep. Sleep deprivation is a form of torture, far more effective than waterboarding or pulling out a person’s fingernails. So, don’t deprive yourself.

Pleasant dreams.