Hours of Required Sleep.

Required sleeping hours vary according to age. Newborns and infants need to sleep more than children who again need to sleep more than grown ups. Lack of sleep creates a sleep debt or a sleep deficit, which has its adverse effects. The body therefore has to “repay” this sleep debt by making up with more sleep subsequently. Sleeping the required hours of sleep therefore is important.

How Much Should I Sleep.

This is the question that will crop in your mind after knowing the importance of sleep which has been explained in the previous post on sleep. There is no hard and fast rule as to how much sleep you require because it varies from person to person. While one may be comfortable with six hours of sleep, another person may require eight hours of sleep to function at the optimum.

Research now has found that genetics plays an important role in determining as to when and for how long a person should sleep. However the sleep hours chart below gives your sleeping hours requirement by age which has been arrived at by a broad consensus.  How much you should sleep is given below as per your age.

 Sleep Hours Chart.

Age	Average hours of sleep per day
Newborns	Up to 18 hours
Up to 12 months	14 to 18 hours
1 to 3 years	12 to 15 hours
3 to 5 years	11 to 13 hours
5 to 12 years	9 to 11 hours
13 to 19 years (Adolescents)	9 to 10 hours
Adults including elderly persons	7 to 8 hours

 Pregnant women need more sleep than other adults and may sleep well over 8 hours. Though the elderly require about 8 hours of sleep, it is quite common to see sleeping problems such as insomnia or less sleeping hours in them. This could be due to aging or due to medical problems associated with advanced age and medication.

Some of us do have problems falling asleep and in the U.S, alone, more than 10% of the population finds it difficult to fall asleep. According to National Commission of Sleep Disorders Research (NCSDR) report which was published in 1993, about 40 million Americans suffer from chronic sleep disorders and an additional 20 to 30 million suffer from intermittent sleep problems.

Deprivation of sleep causes reduced energy levels, lack of concentration, a depressed mood, and reduced overall efficiency. Sleeping well therefore is essential.

How Sleep Affects Mortality.

According to the American Cancer Society, those who slept for about seven hours every night (6.5 to7.5 hours) had the least mortality while those who slept for less than 6 hours and more than 8 hours suffered from higher mortality rate.

Sleeping for more than 8.5 hours every night increased the mortality rate by 15% while similarly, sleeping for less than 3.5 hours in women and 4.5 hours in men increased mortality rate by 15%.

Use f sleeping pills to get sleep is associated with increased mortality rate.

Related posts:

1. NREM Sleep – Non Rapid Eye Movement Sleep.
2. Over The Counter and Natural Sleep Aids to Help You Sleep.
3. Proper Bedroom and Bed to Sleep Better.
4. Managing Stress and Relaxation Techniques to Sleep Well.
5. REM Sleep – The Dreamer’s Sleep.
6. Apnea and Sleep Apnea – A Dangerous Sleep Disorder.
7. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy – An Effective Sleep Treatment.
8. Sleep Aids To Help You Sleep.