About Sleep About sleep

[Darkyo13 0]

Sleep is a natural part of every persons life. We sleep almost one-third of our time. People generally know just a little about the importance of this everyday activity. Sleep is not just something to fill time when a person is inactive, is a required activity, not an option. Even though the precise functions of sleep remain a mystery, sleep is very important for motor and cognitive function. We all know and feel the need to sleep. After sleeping, we see changes that have occurred, as we feel that we have more enegry and we are more alert. Sleep actually appears to be required for survival. On tests mad on rats that were deprived of sleep all die within two to three weeks, a time frame similar to death due to starvation and remember when people do tests on rats they do it to know what it will happen if they put a human to do that so take care and sleep! It is not normal for a person to be sleepy at times when he or she expects to be awake. Problem sleepiness may be associated with difficulty concentrating, memory lapses, loss of energy, fatigue, lethargy, and emotional instability. The sleepiness problem is high and has serious consequences, such as drowsy driving or workplace accidents and errors. Lifestyle factors and undiagnosed or untreated sleep disorders can cause problem sleepiness. Lifestyle factors include not sleeping enough, having an irregular sleep schedule, and drinking alcohol or certain medications. Of the more than 70 known sleep disorders, the most common are obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia, narcolepsy, and restless legs syndrome. Large numbers of individuals suffering from these sleep disorders are unaware of—and have not been diagnosed or treated for—their disorder.
The sleepiness problem may be associated with difficulty concentrating, memory lapses, energy loss, fatigue, lethargy, and emotional instability.
Sleepiness problem can be deadly. Approximately 100,000 automobile crashes each year are from drivers who were “asleep at the wheel.” In a survey of drivers in New York State, approximately 30 percent reported they had fallen asleep at the wheel at some time. Crashes in which the driver is “asleep at the wheel” are especially common among young male drivers. One large study found that in over 50 percent of fall-asleep crashes, the driver was 25 years old or younger. Besides to the high risk of automobile crashes, problem sleepiness can cause difficulties with memory, thinking, learning and feelings, which may lead to poor work and school performance and difficulty with relationships. Furthermore, problem sleepiness leads to errors and accidents in the workplace that also can be deadly in some cases.

Children need more sleep per day in order to develop and function properly: up to 18 hours for newborn babies, with a declining rate as a child ages. A newborn baby spends almost 9 hours a day in REM sleep. By the age of five or so, only slightly over two hours is spent in REM.
REM is the Rapid eye movement sleep, accounts for 20–25% of total sleep time in most human adults. The criteria for REM sleep include rapid eye movements as well as a rapid low-voltage EEG. Most memorable dreaming occurs in this stage.

Average amount of sleep per day
Newborn up to 18 hours
1–12 months 14–18 hours
1–3 years 12–15 hours
3–5 years 11–13 hours
5–12 years 9–11 hours
Adolescents 9–10 hours
Adults, including elderly 7–8 hours
Pregnant women 8(+) hours

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