Why We Need Sleep
All of our cells accumulate waste while they are working, and these waste products can be toxic. If they aren’t removed they can build up and kill our cells. It turns out that toxic proteins are removed twice as fast when we are asleep than when we are awake. Researchers injected mice with colored toxic proteins to see the system at work. The pale blue in the above images are fluid-filled channels between neurons. They expand and flush out waste. (Source & More Information)