New Study Highlights Effects Of Sleep Deprivation

by guest blogger Erica Moss

30 percent of adults in the U.S. are not getting enough sleep.

That’s according to data from the 2010 National Health Interview Survey, published in the April 27 issue of the Center for Disease Control’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. It’s a pretty sobering statistic, isn’t it?

This percentage constitutes about 40.6 million workers, all of whom are sleeping six or fewer hours each day. Of these workers, 44 percent work night shifts and 28.8 percent work during the day. The most common professions in which a worker is likely to be sleep deprived are law enforcement and fire officials, health care workers, security personnel, retail associates in 24-hour stores, and transportation workers. These are all jobs that often require employees to work nights, sometimes consecutively, and sometimes even after a full shift during the day. 

Ten Health Benefits Of Getting Your ZZZ's

Our modern, on-the-go world has become dependent on Starbucks, caffeine packed energy drinks, and/or a nicotine fix to make it to a state of functional each and every morning. This is most certainly due to a lack of sleep as many of us are failing to get enough zzz's. The popular vices of caffeine and nicotine only serve to undermine our health when instead a good night's sleep is usually all we need.

In the United States there are 50-70 million people who suffer from chronic sleep and wakefulness disorders [1]. The National Sleep Foundation states that adults need between 7-9 hours of sleep each night to stay in good health [2]. Getting the proper amount of sleep can do wonders for your health. Here's 10 health benefits of getting the proper amount of sleep.