World Sleep Day 2023: Today, March 17, 2023 is World Sleep Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness about the importance of sleep for a healthy life. In almost all school books, motivational posters, or health tips passed down from generations – a regular and timely sleeping habit is mentioned as essential for a healthy life but yet we often ignore this essential element . We follow a good diet, work out in the gym, practice yoga to keep our body healthy, but sleep is not something we pay much attention to.
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It’s time to change that.
While there is a common saying that everyone needs at least 8 hours of sleep, this statement is a generalization. Just like everyone has different needs for water intake (yes, 8 glasses of water a day is wrong), each body has different sleep needs based on age, weight, activity, etc. But yes, the generally accepted frame is as follows: The Sleep Foundation:
- 7-9 hours of sleep for adults
- 7-8 hours of sleep for people over the age of 65
- 9–11 hours in teens and preteens
- 10-13 hours under 7 years old
- up to 17 hours in infants
However, it is a basic framework for otherwise healthy individuals. The Sleep Foundation suggests that the number of hours may increase or decrease depending on the type of activity, any chronic or acute health conditions, etc. Consider these factors when calculating sleep time:
- Are you productive, healthy and happy on X hours of sleep?
- Any existing illness? Anything that can cause lethargy other than sleepiness.
- do you exert more energy; ie labor intensive job or sport.
- Do you often fall asleep during jobs that require alertness?
- Caffeine Dependency?
- When you are not working, do you sleep more; Like Sundays or Holidays? Or is your sleep continuous?
While some people believe they have trained themselves to need less sleep, experts believe this is a myth. “Some people think they are adapting to being more awake, but are actually performing at a lower level. They don’t realize it because functional decline is so gradual,” says Cynthia La Jambe, sleep expert. Are.
Sleep is necessary because during this time, the muscles of the body get worn out during the day as well as recharge the brain. Proper sleep is essential for proper cognitive and behavioral functioning.
If you are not sleeping properly, there can be some serious effects on your physical and mental health. These include the risk of diabetes, heart and neurological disorders, anxiety, wrinkles, dark circles, reduced response to stimuli, disorientation, etc.