In a new study from the University of South Florida, researchers found all it takes is three consecutive nights of sleep loss to cause your mental and physical well-being to greatly deteriorate.
They looked at the consequences of sleeping fewer than six hours for eight consecutive nights—the minimum duration of sleep that experts say is necessary to support optimal health in average adults.
They found the biggest jump in symptoms appeared after just one night of sleep loss. The number of mental and physical problems steadily got worse, peaking on day three.
At that point, the human body got relatively used to repeated sleep loss. But that all changed on day six, when participants reported that the severity of physical symptoms was at its worst.
The results suggest that having just one night of sleep loss can significantly impair your daily functioning.
In the study, the team used data from nearly 2,000 middle-aged adults who were relatively healthy and well-educated.
Among them, 42% had at least one night of sleep loss, sleeping 1 ½ fewer hours than their typical routines.
Participants reported a pile-up of angry, nervous, lonely, irritable and frustrated feelings as a result of sleep loss.
They also experienced more physical symptoms, such as upper respiratory issues, aches, gastrointestinal problems and other health concerns.
These negative feelings and symptoms were continuously elevated throughout consecutive sleep loss days and didn’t return to baseline levels unless they had a night sleep of more than six hours.
About one-third of U.S. adults sleep less than six hours per night.
The team says once that becomes a habit, it’s increasingly difficult for your body to fully recover from lack of sleep, continuing the vicious cycle of worsening daily well-being, which could impact one professionally.
A previous study found losing just 16 minutes of sleep could impact job performance.
The team’s previous findings also show that minor sleep loss can decrease daily mindfulness, which is a critical resource for managing stress and maintaining healthy routines.
They say the best way to maintain a strong daily performance is to set aside more than six hours to sleep every night.
The study is published in the Annals of Behavioral Medicine. One author of the study is Soomi Lee.
Copyright © 2021 Knowridge Science Report. All rights reserved.
