Sleepy? Then Your Health May Take a Toll

June 2, 2009

People who aren’t getting enough sleep are less likely to lead healthy lives. Why? They’re just too tired.

The National Sleep Foundation in its “2009 Sleep in America Poll” sought to establish links between sleep — and the lack thereof — and its affect on the overall health and well-being of Americans.

The foundation’s measuring stick included everything from diet and exercise to frequency of sex. In short, according to the findings, we feel less healthy, we engage in less healthy habits and we participate less in otherwise healthy activities when we don’t get enough sleep.

There are a growing number of people who are sleeping fewer than six hours a night, said the poll, and there are fewer people sleeping the recommended eight hours a night.

Those who sleep fewer than six hours are unable to:

Exercise = 28 percent
Engage in leisure activities = 30 percent
Work well and efficiently = 21 percent
Eat healthy = 23 percent
Have sex = 15 percent

As for the things that people start to do when they don’t get enough sleep:

Accept it and keep going = 64 percent
Drink caffeinated beverages = 50 percent
Eat foods that are high in sugar or carbohydrates = 17 percent
Do less during the day = 19 percent
Smoke a cigarette or use tobacco = 19 percent
Use over-the-counter products to keep them alert = 13 percent

Our lack of sleep is ageless in that it affects everyone — seniors, Baby Boomers, and Millennials. Anyone who’s feeling stress these days is a victim of the biggest factor related to sleeplessness — from the anxiety associated with the recession and broken nest eggs, to the stress of being connected to the 24/7 world of business and technology.

Most of the respondents to the poll — 36 percent — were Baby Boomers 50 to 64 years old; 11 percent were 18 to 34, 24 percent were 35 to 49 years old, and 25 percent were over 65.

“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. Sleep is just as important for overall health as diet and exercise,” Dr. Carl Hunt, director of the National Center on Sleep Disorders Research at the National Institutes of Health, told WebMD in a post about the sleep study.

All respondents in the Sleep in America poll were asked about sleep aids and a third said they use some kind of aid at least a few nights per week. As to the type of aid:

15 percent use relaxation techniques
8 percent use a sleep medication prescribed by a physician
7 percent rely on alcohol, beer or wine
7 percent use over-the-counter medication
3 percent use alternative therapy such as acupuncture or herbal supplements like Melatonin or Valerian

The study noted that the use of both sleep medications prescribed by a doctor and over-the-counter or store-bought sleep aids has increased significantly over the last few years.

About the Author

Paul Briand spent 33 years in newspaper journalism. Based in New Hampshire, he now writes about issues of interest to Baby Boomers.