The Dangers of Sleep Deprivation

Abstract

T he D angers of S leep D eprivation Nithya Lingampalli B S J During President Ronald Reagan’s term as president, he went on a state visit to Paraguay. As cameras were documenting the occasion and broadcasting it for the world to see, a surprising shot was included. When the cameras focused on Reagan during the Paraguayan president’s speech, he was asleep! His wife quickly woke him up, and then he ascended the stage to deliver his address. However, when he started speaking, he said that he was very happy to be in Uruguay while everyone else smiled politely (Schneider, 2014). This instance illustrates a national health problem, often unrecognized as a severe issue, that many suffer from on a daily basis. Sleep deprivation, either a chronic or transient state, is when the lack of the requisite amount of sleep for upkeep causes the body to experience many physical and mental problems. According to data from the National Health Interview Survey, “nearly 30% of adults reported an average of ≤6 hours of sleep per day in 2005-2007. In 2009, only 31% of high school students reported getting at least 8 hours of sleep on an average school night” (Insufficient Sleep Is a Public Health Epidemic, 2014). Children appear to be most affected by sleep deprivation as a recent study from Boston College suggests that, “70 to 80 percent of school-aged children fall short of experts’ recommendations,” a higher percentage than any other country in the world (Liese, 2014). “According to data from the National Health Interview Survey, “nearly 30% of adults reported an average of ≤6 hours of sleep per day in 2005-2007. In 2009, only 31% of high school students reported getting at least 8 hours of sleep on an average school night” To put the severity of the problem into perspective, the recommended amount of sleep, as suggested by The National Institute of Health, is at least 10 hours for school-age children, 9-10 hours for teens, and 7-8 hours for adults (Insufficient Sleep Is a Public Health Epidemic, 2014). Although there is a variation from these standard times between individuals due to different body requirements, these represent the average amount of time necessary based upon a large sample of the population, and thus serve as a baseline to evaluate individual situations. We see that regardless of the age group, people are falling short of their recommended sleep quota by two hours or more, often on a daily basis. The biological mechanism of sleep deprivation deals with the reduced amount of REM and deep sleep stages, hallmarks of healthy sleep. Normal sleep is divided into “Some of the most interesting [causes] are broad scale societal factors such as the pervasive presence of technology and extremely busy schedules.” two stages, non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM). NREM sleep is further divided into three sub stages (N1, N2, and N3) that progress sequentially and represent an increasing degree of deep sleep. Stage N3, also known as delta-wave sleep, is the deepest stage of sleep and requires a very strong stimulus to be broken Although many areas of the brain are involved in sleep regulation, the hypothalamus seems to be the key component (Stevens, 2013). There are many causes, both direct and indirect, that contribute to sleep deprivation. Some of the most interesting are broad scale societal factors such as the pervasive presence of technology and extremely busy schedules. Access to technology has never been as ubiquitous as it is today, and its influence is growing even more in our daily lives. Phones, tablets, laptops, television, MP3 players, and many more devices are always within reach, at any time of the day. They are alluring due to the vast amount of information they offer a portal to. As a result, many people find it increasingly difficult to separate themselves from their devices, and often use them right until the moment they sleep, or sometimes fall asleep using them. However, using technological devices right before bed, or even some time before, has been shown to negatively impact the ease and quality of sleep. The light from the devices suppresses the levels of melatonin, a hormone that signals to the brain to 21 • B erkeley S cientific J ournal • E xtremes • F all 2014 • V olume 19 • I ssue 1