| Lifelong Health: Adequate Sleep Plays Big Role in Our Health This year, National Sleep Awareness Week and daylight saving time coincided -- an ironic twist as this time of year is particularly hard on our sleep. At the same time, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released alarming information about the hazards of getting less than seven hours of sleep per night.
Even losing an hour of sleep because of daylight saving time can have negative effects on your health. In the three weeks immediately after daylight saving time begins, there is a higher incidence of workplace injuries, impaired scholastic performance in teenagers, and some evidence indicating a transient bump in the incidence of heart attacks. More than sleepless nights and daily fatigue, too little sleep can actually shorten your life.
In a survey conducted in 2009 of 75,571 adults in 12 states, 35.3 percent reported getting less than seven hours of sleep nightly. Of the total respondents, 4.7 percent reported falling asleep at the wheel. And of those getting less than seven hours of sleep nightly, 7.3 percent fell asleep at the wheel. These statistics varied by age. Only 2 percent of those over age 65 admitted falling asleep while driving, compared with 7.2 percent of those between ages 25 and 34. Men were more likely to fall asleep at the wheel (5.8 percent) than women (3.5 percent).
In this report, the CDC notes driving while sleepy caused 1,550 fatalities and 40,000 nonfatal injuries annually.
In a second report, the CDC examined the impact of inadequate sleep on a number of critical functions affecting day-to-day living. Getting less than seven hours of sleep led to an inability to concentrate in 29.3 percent of adults and poor memory in 18.2 percent, and 10.5 percent of respondents had difficulty managing their finances. These researchers point out that as many as 50 percent of individuals getting less than seven hours of sleep nightly may have difficulty performing routine daily tasks.
Lack of sleep is particularly felt within the medical community. The issue of physician fatigue came front and center in 1984 when a young woman, Libby Zion, died in an emergency room. A major contributing factor in her death was the inappropriate use of medications by an overworked and heavily fatigued intern. In training for only eight months, this young doctor was working a long shift (more than 24 hours) and was responsible for far too many patients. That event led to a serious overhaul in the way that young physicians are trained. After much debate and discussion, working hours for interns have been limited to no more than 80 hours a week -- and some have even proposed a 60-hour workweek.
Early dissenters of the reduced work hours claimed that the lightened schedule would impede young physicians, limit their learning and make for "weak" doctors who do not know how to work hard. But after years of implementing a more sensible approach to doctor schedules, the success seems clear. The evidence is compelling that patient care has improved, ability of medical trainees to learn has increased, and greater supervision from the senior full-time physicians fosters improved education.
Though the medical community is not the only field to overwork young professionals, it is one of the only areas where assuring adequate sleep is a priority. Young lawyers, investment bankers, architects and many other professionals are expected to work 16 or more hours per day -- a way of "dues paying" to eventually enter the elite world of the "partner." Many look back with pride at having survived the rigorous rite of passage. It is even generally accepted that the extra hours and grueling schedule led to the necessary toughness to make it in a rough and tumble competitive profession.
More than pushing young employees to be tough and vigilant, this antiquated framework causes much more harm than benefit. Concentrating and learning is impaired, mistakes are more common, and personal well-being is absolutely compromised. Even worse, the brutal work expectations may be limiting many of the best and brightest candidates from entering the field.
For the sake of our health, every field of every endeavor must assure that adequate sleep is a requirement. Not only will health improve, but success and productivity will also be greater.
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Dr. David Lipschitz is the author of the books "Breaking the Rules of Aging" and "Dr. David's First Health Book of More Not Less." To find out more about Dr. David Lipschitz and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. More information is available at www.DrDavidHealth.com. Copyright 2011 Creators Syndicate Inc. |
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