How Much Sleep Do You Really Need?

How Much Sleep Do You Really Need?
news.yahoo.com...

Studies show that people who sleep between 6.5 hours and 7.5 hours a night, as they report, live the longest. And people who sleep 8 hours or more, or less than 6.5 hours, they don't live quite as long. There is just as much risk associated with sleeping too long as with sleeping too short. The big surprise is that long sleep seems to start at 8 hours. Sleeping 8.5 hours might really be a little worse than sleeping five.

For the last 10 years or so, the media has been telling us that Americans are overworked and sleep deprived. The economy was pretty good during those 10 years. Now that the economy is in the toilet and people are having to take on 2 jobs to fill up their gas tank and put food on their table, scientists seem to be re-writing history. Now we only need 6.5 hours of sleep? What the hell? Is this real science or is this propaganda to convince us that burning the candle at both ends is now healthy and will make us live longer?

[edit on 11-6-2008 by Karlhungis]

reply to post by Karlhungis


You are right about your assessment.
It seems like a certain science community is surveying the social trend and feed society with something to appease the masses.
Is this done deliberately or not?

Kacou.

reply to post by Karlhungis


lol I pulled this thread up and your avatar jumped out at me... kinda startled me LOL. That's the crazy killer guy, thought he was after me hehe.

Yeah... I need more sleep.

One of the reasons I like to publicize these facts is that I think we can prevent a lot of insomnia and distress just by telling people that short sleep is OK.

Because none of us can get by a television program without seeing at least 3 commercials that advertise sleeping pills.



[edit on 11-6-2008 by bottle]

reply to post by Bachelor


Sorry about the scare. I just thought it was time to change up the avatar and this guy was the best bad guy I have seen in a long time.

Well, I am glad I am not the only one that is skeptical of this science.

Could be a bunch of crap but it makes sense. Sleeping too much could be bad for you in just the same way that eating too much or drinking too much is bad for you.

it's very simple man. do the math. the amount of time you are awake is the amount of time you need to sleep. For example, if you are up 12 hours a day, you should sleep 12 hours a day. balance your body that way and you will be fine. or if you work 8 hours a day, sleep 8 hours a day. and take 4 to do fun stuff in your life. sleep and awake states have to equal.

To operate effectively, the human mind needs between 3 and 4 hours sleep in order to process information gathered during the day beforehand.

However, this has drawbacks if the person is not physically fit or otherwise mentally resilient (You can end up with insomnia, for example).

The reason most people sleep so long is because our minds simply aren't capable of operating indefinately without time for recuperation*, thus;

The more a person researches or studies, the more time it will take for one's mind to fully comprehend what one has learned.

That, and i do enjoy being able to experience the two greatest escapisms known to man - sleeping and dreaming.



*Like a top-end fighter craft, the mind needs maintenence.

[edit on 1-7-2008 by Anti-Tyrant]

Personally I find that Im most awake and wired when i get 4 hours sleep. Any more and I feel rested, but slightly lethargic.

I think former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher also used to sleep for 4 hours a night only.

In the end, I think its always best to ignore these pseudo-scientific "discoveries" proposed by mad scientists in favour of your own conclusions.

My philosophy is, go lay down when you are tired, and get up when you feel rested.

If your work schedule is rigid, then what you are about to read wouldn't apply. But if your work schedule is flexible, and/or you're a homemaker then you might enjoy a new sleeping schedule.

I have no facts to back this up, and it's all in my head that it really used to be this way in humanity's past.

Humans didn't always live in buildings with locks, doors and windows. So wherever there was a gathering of humans living together, they would have to remain quite alert to potential danger, or possible attacks from a neighboring group.

They didn't stay awake all day and do their day routines and then sleep all night. They would take turns, sleeping a few hours here and there, but nothing like an 8 hour stretch.

So, going back to what I said above, lay down when you're tired and get up when you're refreshed. You could sleep 8 hours, or maybe only 4. Then be awake for another 4 hours, sleep for 2 hours, be awake for 6 hours, etc.

And stay away from television. If you must watch TV shows, then get your self a digital recorder that edits out commercials. My TV set has been unplugged for around 6 months. I've never been better. I still watch a couple of shows through other means on the internet, but they are commercial free.

So yeah, the article quoted, it's being put into the human masses that less sleep is needed. And since less sleep would be needed, then that's more time for work! That's not a very nice thing to do to people.

So many are over worked, underpaid, have multiple jobs and can barely get enough sleep as it is. Now with the economy going bad, people are working even harder, getting less sleep. Something's gonna pop eventually. More stress and less relaxation will ultimately cause more death. But the elite don't care about that. They just want everyone to work work work and ask for little to nothing in return.

There's also a snide little saying that I've come across many times, from my parents and others. It's the "you are lazy" remark if caught sleeping during the day. And I hate that. How can I be lazy when I spend 4 hours in my garden pulling weeds and fighting off biting bugs and humidity and feel tired enough to want to take a 2 hour nap? WTF is wrong with that?

People police each other and try to get everyone to fit into a social "norm."

More sleep, and you're labeled lazy. Less sleep and you're labeled as a better worker.