1. 42% of Americans lose sleep due to stress or anxiety.
2. Three quarters of those who suffer from depression also suffer from a lack of sleep.
It’s essential to understand how vital sleep is for your overall health, particularly if you’re struggling with anxiety or depression.
3. Getting less than 7 hours of sleep each night can make you angry, sad and stressed.
4. Using your phone or a tablet before bed can affect your sleep.
Any bright light before bed isn’t good for getting off to sleep, however the blue light emitted by technology is twice as bad!
Secretion of melatonin, the sleep inducing hormone, is impacted by light and by blue light in particular.
Myth:
“You can catch up on your sleep.”
A good night’s sleep can be absolutely crucial to perform at your best throughout the day. However if you’re chronically fatigued you’ll feel it most in the afternoon and evening as your body runs out of energy.[1]
5. Research shows a lack of sleep can cause weight gain.
Not only that, but when you’re asleep you can actually burn calories, so sleep is so important if you want to maintain a healthy weight.
6. Wearing a sleep mask can improve your sleep quality.
Shutting out the light at night can help you fall asleep quicker, reduce symptoms of depression and improve your skin – just a few of the advantages of wearing a sleep mask!
7. Cool your room down to between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit for the best quality sleep.
8. Drinking coffee before bed delays your internal body clock by 40 minutes.
9. People who procrastinate are more likely to have problems with sleep.
There are a few unexpected things that happen while you’re in the land of nod, read our list of fun sleep facts to learn more!
10. Meditation has been shown to improve sleep.
Researchers at Harvard University found that mindfulness meditation provoked a relaxation response in participants leading to better sleep.[2]
It’s becoming an increasingly popular practice, which isn’t surprising when you consider the many benefits of meditation.
11. One sleepless night affects your brain in the same way as being drunk.
12. Lack of sleep can affect your memory as sleep triggers changes in the brain that solidifies memories.
13. Shift workers who work nights lose more sleep than those who work during the day.
14. ‘Morning people’ are more likely to be successful in their careers.
15. Adults who sleep for less than 7 hours a night are more likely to report suffering from asthma, cancer and diabetes.
16. People who sleep less than 7 hours each night are 12% more likely to die prematurely.
You can survive for up to 74 days without eating, but people can only live 11 days without sleeping.[3]
17. More than 1,500 deaths a year in America are caused by drivers falling asleep behind the wheel.
A lack of sleep has also been found to have serious consequences if you’re behind the wheel, with many scary sleep facts related to drowsy driving.
In New Jersey they have a law known as ‘Maggie’s Law’, which makes it illegal to drive after being awake for 24 hours.[4]
18. An estimated 1 in 25 drivers reported falling asleep at the wheel in the last 30 days.
19. Having a regular massage is shown to improve sleep.
There are many different styles of massage that you can experiment with.
Plus you’ll find a range of massage tools on the market, including those specifically for neck and back pain.
20. 30 minutes of exercise each day correlates with 14 extra minutes of sleep per night.
21. Those who suffer from back pain have worse sleep.
22. Sleeping under a weighted blanket can improve your sleep and has even been proven to help those who suffer from insomnia and anxiety.
More and more companies in Japan are encouraging their staff to sleep on the job as they believe it improves productivity.[5]
23. Believing you’ve slept well, even if you haven’t, is believed to improve performance.
A 2014 study published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology found that telling participants that they’d had a good night’s sleep, even if they hadn’t, made them perform better in tests.[6]
24. Yoga is proven to help you sleep.
Yoga Nidra is a technique that invites you, usually at the end of your routine, to relax every part of your body and cool it down to encourage a deep and relaxing sleep.
There are also a number of slumber-inducing movements and yoga poses for sleep that could be worth a try!
25. The perfect nap, according to NASA, lasts for 26 minutes.
26. Almonds are the perfect bedtime snack as they contain sleep-inducing nutrients.
Bananas, cherries and kiwis are other foods that could help you sleep.
Be sure to avoid chocolate, broccoli and steak before bed if you’re trying to cultivate a healthy sleep routine, as they can have the opposite effect!
We’re a sleep-deprived nation!
Learn about the scale of the problem by adding our roundup of the latest sleep statistics to your bedtime reading list.
References
- Paddock, C. (2010). Chronic Sleep Loss Not Easy To Recoup, Impairs Performance [Online]. Medical News Today. Available from: https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/176079#1 [Accessed 17 August 2023]. ↩
- Corliss, J. (2015). Mindfulness meditation helps fight insomnia, improves sleep [Online]. Harvard Health Blog. Available from: https://www.health.harvard.edu/blog/mindfulness-meditation-helps-fight-insomnia-improves-sleep-201502187726 [Accessed 17 August 2023]. ↩
- Kane, S. (2016). Here's The Longest People Have Survived Without Air, Food, Water, Sunshine, or Sleep [Online]. ScienceAlert. Available from: https://www.sciencealert.com/here-s-the-longest-people-have-survived-without-air-food-water-sunshine-or-sleep [Accessed 17 August 2023]. ↩
- Drivers.com (2007). Sleepless in New Jersey -- it could make you a criminal [Online]. Available from: https://www.drivers.com/article/643/ [Accessed 17 August 2023]. ↩
- McCurry, J. (2014). Japanese firms encourage their dozy workers to sleep on the job [Online]. The Guardian. Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/18/japanese-firms-encourage-workers-sleep-on-job [Accessed 17 August 2023]. ↩
- Beck, J. (2014). Believing You’ve Slept Well, Even If You Haven’t, Improves Performance [Online]. The Atlantic. Available from: https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/01/study-believing-you-ve-slept-well-even-if-you-havent-improves-performance/283305/ [Accessed 17 August 2023]. ↩
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