Eli5: Why do we need to sleep so much, what happens in the body when asleep that cannot happen while normal resting or relaxing? Or is it just for the brain?

Question

Eli5: Why do we need to sleep so much, what happens in the body when asleep that cannot happen while normal resting or relaxing? Or is it just for the brain?

In: Biology

Answer 1

We still don’t know. We guess the body needs to repair itself when resting. Remember your muscles grow after you stop exercising, not during. For the brain, learning (remembering things) happens when it rests. Why we need sleep so much is great question: only about 90min of the time we spent in bed is REM sleep.

*I avoid using computer analogy, even thou I love computer/tech. ELI5 is tough*