Sleeplessness is a safety hazard

Hannah Schott
Oct. 5, 2009
Sleep Shortage

"Going without sleep is as much of a public and personal safety hazard as going to work drunk," Diana Gant, one of the nation's leaders in the study of sleep, said today. Gant is a psychology professor and has studied sleep for more than 17 years.
When she first started to research sleep, Gant wanted to observe people who got little sleep and remained productive. "The problem was, when my subjects arrived in laboratories and got a chance to sleep in dark, quiet rooms, they all slept for about nine hours," Gant said.
She said that experiment and other work convinced her that most people suffer from sleep deprivation.
Gant considers sleep comparable to exercise. She explained: "People exercise because it's healthy. Sleep is healthy."
Most people need to sleep nine to ten hours a night, Gant said. "Some (of that sleep) should be taken in afternoon naps."
Gant said the average person only gets about seven hours of sleep. She said: "Some people think that going without sleep is the big, sophisticated, macho thing to do. They figure they don't need it, that the rules don't apply to them, that they can get more done.
"It may work for them for awhile, but sooner or later they begin to suffer the consequences. Then you can have some real problems."
Gant has gathered data from laboratory studies and statistics on the connection between sleeplessness and accidents. Gant noted: "One thing I've done is study the number of traffic accidents in the state right after the shift to daylight savings time in the spring, when most people lose an hour's sleep.
"There's an 8 percent increase in accidents the day after the time change, and there's a corresponding decrease in the fall when people gain an extra hour of sleep."
Gant added that the effects of people getting up an hour early is the equivalent of a national jet lag. "The effect can last a week," she said.
"It isn't simply due to lack of sleep," she said, "but (to) complications from resetting the biological clock."
Gant declared sleeplessness as the probable cause of disasters such as the space shuttle Challenger's explosion, the nuclear reactor mishap at Russia's Chernobyl and the Exxon Valdez oil spill. "The element of sleeplessness was involved in all of them," Gant said.
Gant said that sleeplessness can make people feel clumsy, stupid and unhappy. People feel as if their clothes weigh a few extra pounds, and they tend to become drowsy after lunch, Gant said. She said that if people cut their eight hours of sleep back to six hours, they will probably become depressed.
If people cut their sleep back to only five hours, they may find themselves "falling asleep at stoplights while driving home," Gant said.
Gant said it is easy for people to find out if they are getting enough sleep. People should ask themselves if they feel sleepy or doze off when they are sitting quietly after a large lunch, Gant explained.
It's easy to solve the problem of sleeplessness, Gant said. She instructed: "Shut off all the lights and draw the shades. Don't drink or eat a lot. That will disturb your sleep."
Tobacco, coffee and alcohol cause the brain to become alert, Gant said, and should be avoided. "Also avoid chocolate and other foods that contain a lot of sugar," Gant advised.
It is good to relax for an hour or so before going to bed by watching TV or reading a good book, Gant said.
Gant added that a room with a 65 degree temperature, a comfortable bed and clean, fresh bed linens are best for good sleep.