THE MYSTERY OF SLEEP: SCIENCE
Every living creature does it. We can't survive without it. Just what goes on during the one third of our life that we spend sleeping?
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How much sleep is enough?
MOS interview
"I normally get seven to eight hours a night."
MOS interview
"Probably five or six hours."
MOS interview
"Nine hours roughly."
New research shows that question carries more weight than you might think. Lack of sleep causes inattentiveness and makes it difficult to learn, but neuroscientist Jerome Siegel has another question.
Jerome Siegel, Ph.D.
Neuroscientist
UCLA Center for Sleep Research
Los Angeles, CA
"The more subtle question is: If you don't get sleep, will it shorten your life span?"
Siegel studies dogs with narcolepsy -- a serious sleep condition. He's been fascinated with the science of sleep for 30 years. He says sleep studies often uncover more questions than answers.
Jerome Siegel, Ph.D.
"Under extreme conditions in animals, if they're totally sleep-deprived for periods of weeks, they will die. They will die sooner than if they don't get food."
During sleep, heart rate, blood pressure and temperature drop. The body also secretes growth hormone, which regulates muscle mass in adults. It secretes leptin too -- a hormone that tells the body it's had enough food.
Problems start when you don't get enough shut-eye. A recent study shows when healthy volunteers were sleep-deprived, they became pre-diabetic after just one week. And that's not all.
Esra Tasali, M.D.
Pulmonologist
University of Chicago
Chicago, IL
"Two nights of sleep restriction to four hours of bedtime resulted in cravings for especially sweets, candies, cookies, types of food that we generally refer as junk food."
Esra Tasali says sleep loss creates even more problems for dieters.
Esra Tasali, M.D.
"The appetite hormone ghrelin goes up, which again signals the brain that you have to have more food."
Most scientists agree sleep boosts the immune system. And Siegel says it's the only time the brain gets a break.
Jerome Siegel, Ph.D.
"Unlike muscles for example, which can rest when you sit down, brain cells are pretty much working 24 hours a day."
So how much sleep do you need? One study shows people who slept seven hours a night were more likely to be alive five years later than those who slept six and those who slept eight hours a night.
Jerome Siegel, Ph.D.
"If you tell people who are sleeping nine hours a night to cut their sleep to seven hours, is their life span going to be extended? That seems unlikely, but it's possible."
Whether you rack up seven hours or not, the important thing to remember is that as you're heading off to dreamland, your body has a full night's work ahead of it.
But what about people who can't get to sleep? Insomnia is a problem 70 million Americans have. In the second part of our special series on sleep, learn the best ways to overcome insomnia - drug-free.
BACKGROUND: Why do we sleep? It's a question that unbelievably, scientists still don't know the answer to. Some experts say sleep is a way for the body to regenerate after a long day. Some believe it's a chance for the brain to rest. Whatever happens during sleep, we know as humans, we can't survive without it. Scientists do know that sleep plays an important role in the development of our brains. Speech, memory and the ability to well, think is dependant on sleep. If we don't get it, we become inattentive and unable to process thoughts or recall memories. Most scientists also agree that sleep helps boost the immune system.
WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENS DURING SLEEP? During sleep, heart rate can drop from 5 percent to 10 percent of what it is while one is awake. Temperature also drops, albeit but abut a single degree. Blood pressure varies between individuals, but many estimates suggest blood pressure can drop up to 20 points while sleeping. Hormones are also secreted. One of these – growth hormone – helps regulate muscle mass in adults. It's also useful in helping children grow. Leptin is also secreted. This hormone tells the body it's had enough food. Many experts feel sleep is the only time when the brain truly gets a break. "Unlike muscles", says Jerome Siegel, Ph.D, from UCLA, "which can rest when you sit down, brain cells are pretty much working 24 hours a day."
WHEN YOU DON'T GET ENOUGH: Researchers don't know how much sleep is truly enough. Esra Tasali, M.D., from Rush University in Chicago, says, "Sleep deprivation has significant detrimental effects on our metabolism, on our endocrine function and especially on our carbohydrate system." In a study she helped conduct, researchers found when healthy volunteers were sleep-deprived; they became pre-diabetic after just one week. When sleep was restored, they returned to their normal state, so the damage was not permanent but the research does paint a picture about just how detrimental too little sleep may be. Too little sleep also made those healthy volunteers crave more sweets, candies, cookies and well, junk food than they normally crave. Sleep loss also causes the hormone ghrelin to go up, which is a hormone that signals the brain that the body needs more food.
JUST HOW MUCH IS ENOUGH? One large epidemiological study showed, contrary to popular belief, eight hours of sleep a night may not be ideal. Siegel says, "More sleep wasn't necessarily better. In fact, people who slept seven hours a night had the greatest probability of being alive five years later. People who slept eight hours a night actually had a greater probability of having died in that interval." So did people who slept less than seven hours a night. He continues, "Seven was optimal. Eight was not as good. Six was not as good. IF you go up to nine, that was much worse and down to five, that was worse. What was interesting is that eight and nine were worse than six and five."
John Easton
Public Affairs
University of Chicago Hospitals
5841 South Maryland Ave. (MC 6063)
Chicago, IL 60637
John.Easton@uchospitals.edu
Copyright © 2005 Ivanhoe Broadcast News, Inc.
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