Healthy Sleep
Most people think that a healthy sleep is one long 7-8 hour period of unconsciousness. However, our sleep consists of various states of sleep that cycle throughout the night. These various sleep cycles are regular alternations between deeper sleep and lighter REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. Each sleep cycle takes about 90 minutes to complete, and the cycle repeats 4-5 times across a normal sleep period. This cycling nature of our sleep is present at all ages, and across species.
Wakening up several times from your sleep is a normal part of a healthy sleep pattern. It is normal for you to wake briefly from the light states of sleep although you may not be aware of this or remember it. As you age, these normal nighttime awakenings become very long and you are more likely to remember them in the morning.
Awakenings across the night will not necessarily produce any ill effect on the way you feel or functions the following day.
The drive for sleep, or homeostatic sleep pressure, builds up the longer you are awake and disperse during sleep. The tendency for sleep is also regulated by the endogenous circadian “body clock”. When your body clock is timed normally, sleepiness is high during the night time and low during the day, and your night time sleep is well consolidated. The processes of homeostatic pressure and circadian function works together to promote regular sleep patterns. Disturbance of your body clock (such as in jet lag and shift work) results in insomnia symptoms
The amount of sleep that is needed in the body varies with age. Infants needs about 16 hours of sleep per day, toddlers about 10 hours, adolescents about 9 hours, young adults 8 hours and the elderly about 7 hours a day. However, the need for sleep may differ for all people of the same age. Some may need 10 hours of sleep at night to feel refreshed and strong for the next day, others may need just 5 hours of sleep
Recent Comments
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Interesting information, I did not know any of this. I just had a sleep study last week, I didn't ask many questions, its weird they want you to sleep so they can study your patterns, however you have tons of wires from head to toe and an uncomfortable bed. It was a long night.
Mary
Sometimes your body need more sleep sometimes less. So give your body sleep when it needs it most
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Thanks for the information Bibian.
Derek