
25
Jul
2018
Many Australians are desperately trying to balance the growing demands of work with family and leisure time every day, and in an attempt to find more hours, people are pushing back on sleep.
Does this sound familiar?
This is not just happening in Australia but around the globe. In fact, a 2018 study by the Oxford University Press’ SLEEP journal1 described the lack of sleep a ‘worldwide epidemic’.
Sleep deprivation is a general term used to describe the state caused by inadequate quantity or quality of sleep.
Sleep is an essential part of maintaining both physical and mental health, and although people’s habits can differ, the average required sleep for an adult is around 7.5 hours every night. While sleeping less is often considered simply a lifestyle choice, there are real consequences to missing out on valuable sleep, and if it continues over a long period of time, it can have a detrimental effect on your health, quality of life and overall performance.
Today, we are expected to be at the top of our game during work hours, we need to be fully functional for our family responsibilities, and we want to be healthy and happy during our personal time- however, sleep deprivation can negatively affect our performance in all three areas.
This is because a lack of sleep can:
Getting sufficient sleep every night is important as it plays an essential role in our performance undertaking life’s daily tasks. In addition to causing problems with our work productivity, sleep deprivation is likely to have negative impacts on other areas of our lives as well.
In a world today where it’s all too easy to experience sleep depravity, we should all be aiming to get the most out of our sleep to remain healthy and happy each day.
At ResSleep, we have created a free eBook available to download right now, called the 8 Ways To Sleep Better Tonight, which explains the eight best ways to improve your sleep in order to get the best rest out of every night.
References:
[1] Sleep Journal. Oxford University Press – June 2018.
[2] Sleep deprivation: why your brain needs to go to sleep. University of Queensland. https://qbi.uq.edu.au/blog/2017/10/sleep-deprivation-why-your-brain-needs-go-sleep
[3] Sleep deprivation. Better Health Victoria. https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/sleep-deprivation