Sleep as a pillar of health, not a luxury

I always ask my patients how they sleep. Not out of courtesy, but because sleep is one of the most underestimated determinants of health, and one of the most neglected in modern medicine.

For a long time, sleep was seen as wasted time. Today we know the opposite: sleep is an active biological process, during which the brain consolidates memories, regulates hormones and eliminates metabolic waste. The discovery of the glymphatic system showed that it is above all during deep sleep that the brain «cleans» itself of proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease.

Chronic sleep deprivation is not a minor inconvenience. It is associated with higher risk of obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, depression and overall mortality. A single poor night's sleep is enough to alter insulin sensitivity and disrupt appetite the following day, something many of my patients recognise immediately.

In my practice, working on sleep is often the first step, not the last. Regular schedules, morning exposure to natural light, reducing screens at night and a cool, dark bedroom are simple interventions with no side effects that are profoundly effective. Sleeping well is not a luxury: it is preventive medicine in its purest form.