SLEEP
ARE YOU GETTING ENOUGH?
Why sleep is important
Q:
How many hours of sleep is recommended for…
Children between 3-5 years of age?
Children between 6-12 years of age?
Adolescents 12years +?
A:
Young children between 3-5 yrs are recommended
to receive 11 to 13 full hours of sleep
Older children, 9 to 11 full hours of sleep per night
Adolescents, 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep
Q:
What is the average hours of sleep
an adult gets each night
A:
According to a recent article in Time
Magazine, the average American adult
receives an average of 6.5 hours of
sleep a night
How many hours of sleep
should adults get each night?
According to the National Sleep
Foundation, adults should get 7 to 9
hours of full sleep each night
WHY?!?
Sleep usually consists of five phases, each of which are very
critical to the other.
Regular sleep cycles help regulate immune and digestive systems
Helps control emotions and mental performance such as memory,
problem solving, and decision making
Provides the body adequate time to break down proteins, which
help our bodies heal and grow
DID YOU
KNOW?
• At least 40 million Americans each year suffer
from chronic, long term sleep disorders
• An additional 20 million experience sleep
problems
• Sleep deprivation and medical conditions
from chronic loss of sleep costs an estimated
$16 billion in medical costs each year
• There are over 70 different sleep disorders
Information retrieved from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes
www.ninds.nih.gov
Most Common Sleep
Disorders
• Insomnia- about 60 million
Americans
• Sleep Apnea- interrupted breathing,
about 18 million Americans
• Restless Leg Syndrome- about 12
million Americans
• Narcolepsy- estimated 250,000
Americans
Information retrieved from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Strokes
www.ninds.nih.gov
What is Sleep Deprivation?
• When you do not get the sleep you need, you begin
to build up a sleep debt *
• Way to look at it: So if you are losing one hour of
sleep a day during the week, by Friday you have a 5
hour sleep debt. We usually make up for this by
sleeping in on Saturday and Sunday.
• Sleep debt is caused by not having enough time to
get the sleep you need, or it is due to a sleep
disorder which disrupts sleep.
Causes of Sleep Deprivation
• Not allowing enough time to sleep
• Anything that cause insomnia or poor quality of sleep
(caffeine, alcohol, stress)
• Sleep Disorders
• Excessive worry or depression
• Repeated waking up in the middle of the night
• Working at night
• Traveling across time zones
• Medical pain or difficulty breathing
Material Retrieved from Nebraska Rural Health & Safety Coalition
Consequences of Sleep
Deprivation
• Decrease in productivity
• Increase of motor vehicle and work
related accidents
• Possible disruption of social
relationships
• Possible development of more serious
medical conditions
• Immune system and digestive issues
Material Retrieved from Nebraska Rural Health & Safety Coalition
Sleepiness Scale
What Activities make you doze
In contrast to just feeling tired… how likely are you to
doze off in the following situations?
Rate each on a scale from 0 to 3. 0 indicating would never doze and 3
indicates highly likely to doze
1. Sitting & Reading
2. Watching TV
3. As a passenger in a car
4. Lying down to rest
5. Sitting & Talking to someone
6. Sitting quietly after lunch
7. In a car, while waiting in traffic
* Add you numbers up… if your score is greater than 10 there is a cause
for concern due to significant daytime sleepiness
Sleep & Our Students
• As teenagers move through the teen years,
they need an increasing amount of sleep…
researchers suggest about 9 hours straight
sleep
• But recent studies indicate that they
actually receive less for each grade they
advance
• Sleep deprivation is associated with memory
loss, anxiety, depression, and decrease in
creativity
• 20% of all high school students fall asleep in
class
The Good News
Better
sleep…
is possible
Tips for a Healthy Sleep
• Try to go to bed at the same time and
get up at the same time everyday
• Stay away from caffeine
• Use your bed for sleep, not for an office
• Avoid exercising near bedtime
• Don’t go to bed hungry
• Avoid looking at the clock
• A night cap… has a price
Useful Websites
National Sleep Foundation- Sleep Test
www.sleepnet.com
American Academy of Sleep Medicine
www.aasmnet.org
American Insomnia Association
www.americaninsomniaassociation.org
Talk with others about sleep
www.talkaboutsleep.com
The Hoag Hospital Sleep Disorder Center
sleepcenter@hoaghospital.org