Sleep; the elusive obvious

Lifestyles in modern cities have altered radically over the past century in ways that have consistently eroded the status of sleep, leaving many more sleep deprived than at any other period in human history. Vast opportunities for entertainment and leisure, compounded with working longer hours has inadvertently created what William Dement – a pioneering sleep researcher & founder of The Sleep Research Centre – calls a: "sleep sick society".

• Feel lethargic and unmotivated?
• Susceptible to moodiness & irritability?
• Fall asleep within five minutes of going to bed?
• Prone to frequent colds and infections?
• Regular user of stimulants: caffeine, tobacco?

Indicators of sleep deprivation are usually subtler than falling face first into your dinner plate. Furthermore, if you have made a habit of skimming on sleep, you may not even remember what it feels like to be wide-awake, fully alert and firing on all cylinders. The quality of your sleep directly affects the quality of your waking life, including your: mental sharpness; productivity; emotional balance; creativity; physical vitality; and even your weight!

In 2004 researchers at the University of Chicago found that partial sleep deprivation alters the circulating levels of the hormones that regulate hunger, causing an increase in appetite and a preference for calorie dense, high carbohydrate foods. Van Cauter – an expert on sleep based at the University of Chicago – explains: "Since the brain is fueled by glucose, we suspect it seeks simple carbohydrates when distressed by lack of sleep." At the same time, the added difficulty of making decisions while sleepy may weaken ones motivation to select more nutritious foods, making it harder to push away the chocolates in favor of a low fat yogurt.

Understanding sleep

There is no universal, one-size-fits-all rule when determining ones ideal sleep duration, as individuals differ considerably pending on lifestyle and genetics. The conventional eight hours per night is not far off the ideal mark, some people may require more, it simply depends. When a person is tired their body communicates this via indicators of sleep deprivation. These signals should be embraced, they are natures way of saying slow down, or at least pace yourself. Instead of reaping the rewards of sleep, many of us suppress the signals with cups of coffee, cigarettes, sugary snacks and paracetemol, which offer a mere short-term solution whilst perpetuating the problem.

There is a big difference between the amount of sleep one can get by on and the amount required to function optimally. The best way to figure out if you are meeting your sleep requirements is to evaluate how you feel throughout your day. If you are logging enough hours, you should feel energetic, alert and happy from the moment you wake up until you rest your head at night.

The sleep cycle

Sleeping consists of ninety-minute cycles that usually repeat themselves four to six times per night, depending on total sleep duration. One complete cycle consist of four different stages and one repetitive eye movement phase:

Stage 1 – (falling asleep) Lasts approximately five minutes. Eyes move slowly under the eyelids, muscle activity slows down, but individual can be easily awoken.

Stage 2 – (light sleep) This is the first stage of true sleep, lasting approximately 15-20mins. Eye movement stops and the body temperature decreases.

Stage 3 – (deep sleep) At this stage you are difficult to awaken, if you are disturbed, you do not adjust immediately and are often left feeling disorientated for several minutes.

Stage 4 – (intense deep sleep) This is the deepest stage of sleep. Your brain waves are extremely slow. Blood is directed away from the brain and towards the muscles, restoring their physical energy.

Repetitive eye movement - Between 70-90 minutes after falling asleep, you enter REM sleep, where dreaming occurs. Eyes move rapidly, breathing is shallow, heart rate and blood pressure increases whilst arms and leg muscles remain paralyzed.

Eight hours of sleep, which equates to 480 minutes, allows five 90-minute cycles to be completed, allowing the body sufficient time to address each stage. Should you have a particularly active day, your sleep cycle will require more time in stages 3 & 4 in order to prepare for the following day. This day-to-day calibration should be factored in when planning sleep, as a day at the office & gym shall be more consuming than just a day at the office.

Completing 90 minute cycles also allows a desirable synchronization between the natural body clock and an external alarm clock, allowing you to wake up smoothly after Stage 1 sleep, instead of an abrupt ascension from stage 3 or 4 to the surface of reality. Being jolted from deep sleep usually has the consequence of creating a groggy and sluggish start to the morning, whilst making the transition from sleep to reality an unpleasant experience.

Moving forwards — a consistent sleep plan would do anybody the wonder of good, staying in tune with your internal messages and remembering that nature does not compromise would be an intelligent strategic step that would inevitably improve all of the senses which you perceive and experience the world through.

Sleep well!