By Kelsey Mobbs/reporter
Students want to take full advantage of their college years, and I have first-hand experience with that.
But, in order to have fun, students cut hours of sleep, which is not the solution for living a healthy life.
If you’re getting less sleep than your body needs, there can be serious consequences. College students usually have late nights from studying all night or partying too much or just living in a 24/7 society.
The result is a tired feeling upon waking and sleepiness during the day.
The American Sleep Research Institute states that while a person sleeps, the body is rejuvenated. Cells are repaired, the immune system is strengthened and mental functions are sharpened.
Immune system activity occurs in the first few hours of sleep. Keep your body clock and immune system functioning properly by going to sleep and rising at the same time every day.
According to WebMD.com, for the past six years, the Sleep in America poll—conducted on behalf of the National Sleep Foundation—has provided a snapshot of the nation’s bedroom woes.
Consistently, the polls have shown that about half of adults get a good night’s sleep almost every night. Today, one in six adults report getting less than six hours of sleep nightly.
The Sleep in America polls and several large studies have linked sleep deficits with poor work performance, driving accidents, relationship problems and mood problems like anger and depression.
“People just don’t realize how important sleep is, and what the health consequences are of not getting a good night’s sleep on a regular basis,” Carl Hunt said in a WebMD article.
“There’s recent evidence showing—in men and women in several countries—that chronic sleep deprivation increases risk of early death,” she said.
These studies articulate the price society pays in not getting a good night’s sleep.
The only sure way for an individual to overcome sleep deprivation is to increase nightly sleep time to satisfy his or her biological sleep need; there is no substitute for sufficient sleep.
The foundation provides strategies that may provide a short-term benefit to reduce the effects of sleep deprivation. They are not a long-term solution, however,
For information, visit www.sleepfoundation.org to receive quizzes and interactive tools about information on sleep and to access a personal sleep diary.
