Sleep story

Good sleep is valued as a cure for all kinds of ailments, from emotional stress to physical illness. It can also be maddeningly elusive. There are many facts and fictions about good sleep.

1.   According to various studies the average amount of time spent asleep varies from seven to nine hour among adults. There is a surprising connection between length of sleep and mortality rate was lowest among those who slept between seven and eight hours at night, yet was one and a half times higher among the extremely short term sleepers which are less than four hours. The mortality rate among frequent users of sleeping pills was double that of people who didn't take any medicine. A research has also shown that normal seven to eight-hours sleepers can successfully adapt to one and a half  hours less sleep daily with no impairment of mental or physical ability.

2.   The second fact about sleep is that the body needs sleep in order to restore  and repair the cells. But some researches seem to disapprove it. Scientists say "the key stimulus to body restitution is the absorption of amino acids through the guts after eating."Sleep is fasting state; the body is more likely to repair itself during times of relaxed wakefulness. What is known is that some sleep is needed by the brain to repair the effects of waking wear and tear on the cerebral cortex.

3.   The third fact about sleep is feeling tired during day and lack of right kind of sleep at night. But the researches prove it not true because tiredness and lethargy can be due to a great many factors such as inactivity, boredom, stress and depression. Many stimulants such as nicotine, alchohol,  coffee as well as poor eating habits can lead to low blood sugar levels, producing a characteristics feeling of exhaustion.

4.   The weather plays a part too: very low or very high barometric pressure can induce feeling of sleepiness. It used to be thought that there was a special kind of sleep that was vital for physical and mental health. This type of sleep occurs as part of the sleep cycle and is known as Rapid Eye Movement sleep, which is characterized by blinking ;twitching movement. Studies are more concerned with a particular type of sleep which has been called SWS (slow wave sleep) characterized by long, slow delta brain waves.

5.   Body works roughly on a 24-hours cycle, known as the circadian rhythm. There may be two internal body clocks at work, one controlling sleep and wakefulness, and other body temperature and other aspects of general physiology. Both can be changed but over a period of time.

6.   The perceived quality of sleep is very much a subjective impression. Insomnia is, in fact, one of the few human disorders that can only be self-diagnosed. A research shows that "those who complained that it took them an hour to get to sleep were well awake in less than 30 minutes. And some who had actually experienced brief and frequently interrupted periods of sleep awoke refreshed and content with the amount of rest they had.

7.   The most commonly reported sleep disorder are difficulty in falling asleep, waking frequently during night, and waking up too early in the morning. However, there is absolutely no medical evidence whatsoever that sleep disorders will have a bad effect on general physical health.

      Sleep maintenance:

For sleep maintenance researchers suggest the following tips;

1.  Always wake up at the same time every morning.

2.   No day time naps.

3.  Go to bed only when feeling sleepy.

4. If you are not feeling sleepy, get up and do something else.

5. Avoid heavy meals and limit coffee, tea, alcohol and nicotine during the evening.

6. Some home remedies include hop pillow, herbal teas and book reading. Alleviating anxiety appears to be the key to quiet nights-meditation, yoga, and any of the established anti-stress therapies are of benefit here; good sleeping patterns always require a relaxed mind.