Sleep and It’s Importance
Sleep deprivation is the country’s biggest disease state…..by far!!!
*Exceeds incidence of diabetes, obesity, substance dependency*
Sleep is now recognized as a critical part of a healthy lifestyle. Medical professionals acknowledge that any effective wellness program must include a healthy diet, regular exercise and quality sleep every night. Sleeping well, like exercising and eating right, is key to feeling your best every day. How you sleep affects everything: how you feel, your productivity, your relationships and your quality of life.
Approximately 20% of the general population suffers from sleep disorders.
According to the Better Sleep Council’s (BSC) third annual Stress and Sleep Survey, women identify getting a good night’s sleep as their top priority for personal wellness.
- 27% believe sleep is the most important wellness activity
- 24% believe a balanced diet is most important
- 19% believe exercising 30 minutes a day is most important
The full summary on women’s beliefs on the importance of sleep.
For millions of people, the consequences of a poor night’s sleep are everyday occurrences, as reported by the Better Sleep Council. This includes higher stress, increased mistakes, difficulty concentrating, poor memory and irritability.
And sleep deprivation is cumulative. One hour of sleep lost each night leads to a deficit later in the week. It’s not surprising that sleep disorders cost upwards of $90 billion per year in accidents, lost productivity and absenteeism.
Medical professionals and survey respondents recognize the many benefits of getting enough quality sleep. A good night’s sleep provides you with:
- More energy, day and night
- Ability to more effectively handle stress and minor irritations
- Improved mental efficiency and memory
- Better productivity
- Improved quality of life
SLEEP Q & A
We answer some commonly-asked questions about sleep and sleep disorders
*Why do we sleep?*
Most experts believe sleep is a time when we “recharge” the mind and body. A typical human spends one third of his/her life asleep. The nature and quality of this time can have a dramatic impact on the hours we are awake. Many people spend seven to eight hours in bed, but due to sleep disorders, the quality of that sleep makes it more like five or six hours of sleep.
*What happens when you sleep?*
Sleep is an active physiological state. While sleeping, your brain goes to work, consolidating the day’s learning into memory and reenergizing the body. Researchers have found that the body uses the time of good sleep to conduct an active immune “house cleaning.” Sleep also affects metabolism and hormone patterns and regulates body chemistry. Sleep medications work in part by reducing awakenings.
How much sleep do you need?
- Each individual needs a certain amount of sleep per day, ranging from six to nine hours. Eight hours is typically considered a good night’s sleep.
Older people need less sleep per day, younger people need more sleep per day:
- Adults ages 35 to 50 require 7 hours of sleep
- Adults over the age of 50 require 6 hours of sleep
- Children under age six require 10 hours of sleep
- Children ages six to 14 typically require 9 hours of sleep
Factors influencing the quality of sleep have the same effect as not getting enough sleep. Sleeping all night in an uncomfortable place will have the same effect as waking up two hours early, or waking up several times during the night.
*I have heard there are stages of sleep. What are they?*
There are two types of sleep – REM and non-REM, often referred to as deep sleep and light sleep, respectively. People go through cycles of REM and non-REM sleep during the course of the night. Often people awake after each cycle. Non-REM sleep is the first stage. Then a person will have a short burst of REM sleep. As the night goes on, there are more cycles, with the REM sleep phase getting longer in each succeeding cycle. The REM sleep is very important and can be affected by the mattress you use. Studies have shown that Tempur-Pedic® mattresses can help increase the REM sleep, decrease periods of waking and ultimately, increase deep sleep.
The depth of sleep is defined by how hard it is to wake a person up. If you wake someone up, 85% of the time they are dreaming.
Sleep is also affected by each person’s circadian rhythm. The *circadian rhythm* is how our body cycles during the day and goes along an approximate 24-hour cycle. REM sleep has a circadian rhythm. For that reason, controlling when you go to bed and being aware of your personal cycle are important to establishing a good sleep routine.
What can I do to improve my sleep?
- Maintain a regular wake/sleep schedule
- Be aware of how much sleep you need
- Avoid things that inhibit sleep – nicotine, caffeine and alcohol
- Have a good, supportive mattress
All these things can reduce the number of awakenings each night, which is the same effect sleep medicines have.
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