Imagine a cure-all that helps prevent cancer, weight gain and heart disease… one that can improve memory and athletic performance and even fend off colds.

Now suppose that this panacea is pleasurable. It’s not a daily pill, painful injection or bizarre-tasting tonic. And then imagine that only about 30 percent of you bother to take full advantage of this remedy.

You’ve likely guessed we’re talking about sleep, and you know your body needs it, yet you’re still depriving yourself.

Nearly 60 percent of you log fewer than the seven to eight hours a night that experts say is optimal, according to a recent Self.com poll. Worse, more than 15 percent of you get by on fewer than six.

“Sleep is no different from diet or exercise,” says Carol Ash, D.O., a sleep specialist in Jamesburg, N.J. We know that eating 10 percent more calories a day can add 15-plus pounds to our frame in a year. But we fail to understand that sleeping 10 percent less carries a similar risk for weight gain. In fact, women who sleep five or fewer hours a night are one-third more likely to gain 33 pounds over the next 16 years than those who get seven hours of slumber, the American Journal of Epidemiology reports.

And that’s just for starters. It’s best for our body to cycle through the five sleep stages four or five times a night: The first four stages are key to maintaining healthy metabolism, learning and memory; the fifth (rapid eye movement sleep, or REM) is important for regulating mood and forming emotional memories. Miss a cycle or two and our immune system, heart health, brain function and more can suffer.

Give it a rest! It’s time to get the curative shut-eye you crave.

by Patti Wolter, SELF