Lack of sleep can double the speed of ageing!

Lack of a good night's sleep can not only give you puffy eyes but also make you look old by increasing the wrinkles and fine lines on your face, a new study has found. People also looked sadder when sleep-deprived than after normal sleep, and sadness was related to looking fatigued, scientists said. Sleep deprivation affects facial features such as the eyes, mouth and skin, and these features function as cues of sleep loss to other people. The faces of sleep-deprived individuals were perceived as having more hanging eyelids, redder eyes, more swollen eyes and darker circles under the eyes. Sleep deprivation was also associated with paler skin, more wrinkles or fine lines, and more droopy corners of the mouth. The study photographed 10 subjects on two separate occasions: after eight hours of normal sleep and after 31 hours of sleep deprivation. Forty participants rated the 20 facial photographs with respect to 10 facial cues, fatigue and sadness. According to the authors, face perception involves a specialised neuronal network and is one of the most developed visual perceptual skills in humans. Facial appearance can affect judgements of attributes such as trustworthiness, aggressiveness and competence.