How does sleep deprivation affect your immune system?

Sleep deprivation significantly weakens immune function in several ways. During sleep, the body produces cytokines, proteins that help fight infection and inflammation. When you don't get enough sleep, cytokine production drops, leaving you less equipped to combat pathogens. Studies show that people sleeping fewer than six hours per night are four times more likely to catch a cold when exposed to the virus compared to those sleeping seven or more hours. Chronic sleep loss also reduces the activity of natural killer cells, which destroy virus-infected and cancerous cells, and lowers antibody production after vaccination. Over time, persistent sleep deprivation creates low-grade systemic inflammation, which is linked to increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, and autoimmune conditions.