The Matt Walker Podcast

#101 - The Sleep Prescription To Better Immunity with Dr. Aric Prather

34 snips
Jul 7, 2025
Dr. Aric Prather, a UCSF sleep expert and professor, dives into the vital connection between sleep and immune health. He explains how inadequate sleep can elevate your risk of colds and diminish vaccine effectiveness. Dr. Prather also discusses chronic inflammation as a byproduct of sleep deprivation and how it complicates age-related diseases. The conversation highlights sleep as a powerful yet often ignored tool for boosting immunity, presenting actionable strategies for improving sleep quality to enhance overall health.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
INSIGHT

Sleep Impacts Immune System Arms

  • Sleep greatly influences our immune system's two main arms: the innate and adaptive immune responses.
  • Lack of sleep can increase infection risk and promote chronic inflammation linked to age-related diseases.
INSIGHT

Short Sleep Quadruples Cold Risk

  • Sleeping fewer than six hours raises the risk of catching a cold by about four times.
  • Objective measures show a dose-dependent relationship between sleep duration and infection susceptibility.
INSIGHT

Sleep Drives Immune Cell Migration

  • During sleep, adaptive immune cells like B and T cells migrate from circulation to lymphoid organs.
  • This 'homing' enables rapid immune response to infections, underscoring sleep's unique restorative role.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app