You’ve undoubtedly heard that eight hours of sleep every day are required. You probably don’t if you’re like the third of Americans. But is the eight-hour rule followed everywhere? It’s important to get enough sleep and figure out what that means for you, even if experts say this is more of a general rule than a hard and fast rule.
Our capacity to learn and make decisions, as well as our mood and judgment, can all suffer from sleep deprivation, which can be harmful to our general health.
Additionally, a lack of sleep can hinder our bodies’ capacity to recover from sickness and heal, as well as raise our risk of developing heart disease, stroke, diabetes, obesity, depression, and anxiety.
The same is true for sleeping excessively, which has been connected to diabetes, heart disease, depression, anxiety, and a higher risk of mortality.
The amount of sleep you require is inherited, just like your height or eye color. According to studies, the majority of us require between 7.5 and 9 hours of sleep, but 13.5% of people require at least 9 hours.
According to sources whether you’re ill, recuperating from rigorous activity, pregnant, or making up for sleep deficit, you’ll need more sleep than your baseline.
At the acute end of the range, sleep debt makes you drowsy, irritated, prone to procrastination, weak in willpower and drive, and sensitive to disease. At the chronic end of the spectrum, it causes metabolic malfunction, mental health disorders, and chronic health issues.
Despite the fact that undersleeping is more frequent, it is possible to sleep excessively. According to sources, occasionally sleeping in when you’re ill or exhausted following a particularly stressful day at work isn’t a cause for concern. However, if you find yourself needing to sleep for more than 10 hours every night, it may be time to investigate your sleep health.
No matter how much sleep you get, if you feel drowsy all day long and have symptoms like poor energy and motivation during the day, you may be oversleeping. Remember that underlying medical disorders may be to blame, therefore it’s crucial to discuss this with your doctor.
