If you feel like you are not getting enough sleep, you are not alone. According to an estimate based on data from developed countries, one-third of the total population is sleep deprived.

The modern society puts a lot of pressure on each one of us to make every minute count. The ever-increasing time we spend in front of bright screens of mobile devices has made it even more difficult to manage and balance our time. To accommodate these demands, it seems we as humans have collectively decided to make sleep a casualty in our quest to squeeze out some more time for work and leisure from the limited 24 hours in a day. Furthermore, as a culture, our approach towards sleep as something that is dispensable–a sign of laziness–or a sheer waste of time does not help either.

As Indians, we even have sayings like “Jo sovat hai, wo khovat hai” (The one who sleeps, loses). It is taught in our school textbooks that our first prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, slept for only four hours, and the same thing is said about our current prime minister Narendra Modi as well. As a society that claims to put a premium on a culture of being one with nature, this devaluation of sleep is completely paradoxical. It is time we stopped equating productivity and success with lesser hours of sleep because, in reality, the evidence is that of an opposite relationship.

Nature has optimised our bodies according to the earth’s rotation on its axis and has taken place over thousands of years of evolution. Going to sleep when it is dark and waking up when the sun rises is a part of this optimisation. Though we haven’t fully understood why we sleep, what we do know is that this is very important for the proper functioning of our brain. In the words of prominent sleep researcher J. A. Hobson, “sleep is of the brain, by the brain, and for the brain.” Sleep is believed to be important for memory storage and consolidation. A recent study at the University of Rochester showed that the brain has a lymphatic system, which is like a plumbing system that sanitises the brain during sleep by flushing out the toxins accumulated during waking hours. One of these toxins is beta-amyloid that is responsible for causing Alzheimer’s disease.

Though the recommended number of hours of sleep can vary from person to person depending on their genes, sex and age group, there is a consensus that a majority of adults need anywhere between 6 to 9 hours of sleep every night . Anything less than that falls in the category of sleep deprivation.

To get an idea of how important sleeping is, it has been observed that a reduction in sleep duration by one hour increases the risk of heart attack by 24 per cent. A study conducted among doctors working night-shifts in Hong Kong found that those pulling all-nighters because of their shifts had more damaged DNA than the ones working regular day shifts. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has even identified shift-work as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases and cancer . Studies have also shown that in addition to reduced physical and mental performance, sleep deprivation and lack of quality sleep leads to obesity, diabetes, hypertension, detrimental effects on mental health, and weakening of the immune system which in turn leads to a higher susceptibility towards infections. Over time, the effects of poor sleep quality and quantity lead to reduced functional capabilities and increased used of medication.

From a public health perspective, this also means a greater burden on the healthcare system since sleep deprivation has an economic and societal cost. When our brain is not functioning at full capacity, it leads to low productivity and increased manual errors. Several industrial disasters have been attributed to drowsy workers and studies have shown that sleep-deprived drivers are at times as dangerous as drunk drivers.

Along with the amount of time we sleep, it is equally important to maintain good sleep hygiene. Experiencing frequent disturbances while sleeping and feeling extreme daytime sleepiness are indicators of poor sleep hygiene. Good sleep hygiene involves developing habits and an environment that facilitates good quality and disturbance-free sleep. This includes avoiding consumption of stimulants like caffeine before bedtime; staying away from bright lights, including that from cellphones and TV screens; and maintaining a consistent sleep schedule in a comfortable sleeping environment. So the next time you feel like pulling an all-nighter to get some work done or simply because you want to spend more time on social media, just think about the damage this will do to your body. But if you choose to get a good night’s sleep, it will mean higher productivity and better health. Sleep is the best performance enhancer that nature has provided us with, along with good nutrition and regular exercise, so let’s start giving our sleep the attention it deserves.

Shreyas Joshi (@jshreyas) is Postdoctoral Scientist at the Yale School of Public Health.