Why People Sleep Less - Assignment Example

 Sleeping less than the normally required eight hours of sleep is emerging as a trend around the world. People sleep less to attend exercise class and then get together for a coffee. Off late people tend to sleep an average five hours and set the alarm to begin the chores early in a day. It is not that people are fanatic about exercise. But the key factor that requires people to sleep less is time. The exercise schedule can be shifted to some other part of the day instead of waking up early but that time may demand a person to attend business meetings or other work issues. The trend of sleeping less is evident from a national perspective and the sleep hours are declining by twenty minutes for years notes Dr.Raymond Rosen at the Comprehensive Sleep Disorders Center. A survey financed by the Dentistry of New Jersey and the University of Medicine revealed that 17 percent New Jerseyans slept five hours or less during a night because they have to catch a commuter train or have to drive long. Dr.Rosen emphasizes that there is a trend in the society to shorten the amount of normal hours of sleep. The fundamental cultural stereotype behind less sleep is that sleep is a waste of time. The trend to sleeping less has remained in the society for around a century. It has become easy for individual to stay awake late at night after the invention of the incandescent light bulb by Thomas Alva Edison in 1879. Artificial light was a leisure which only the rich could afford since it was expensive, but with the use of electricity now all can stay awake and do what we want. Besides the supply of reliable and cheap source of light, there are other factors that contribute to decrease sleep in individuals. Time is a crucial factor that leads people to sleep less. The post industrial economy has evolved time as the scarcest commodity. Dr.Rosen further notes that the society gives more importance to productivity. People relate long sleeping hours to laziness and wish to engage in productive activities. In the frenetic race to pack the chores that requires 28 hours to complete into a 24 hour day people stay awake till late night or set the alarm to rise early or toss in bed worrying about the task to be completed the next day. In most cities it takes hours to commute to the workplace. Here time is in short supply and requires people to rise early. The cost of living is increasing by the day and it requires people to find residence in outer city or work long hours or take multiple jobs. These factors can reduce the sleeping time of individuals and it is people who undertake two jobs that are most deprived of sleep. For example, a person can take up a full time job and work as a consultant. But during peak season, the job demands more time and work runs into the wee hours of the morning (Galant p.1). A single parent is deprived of sleep because the task of child rearing is exponentially complex. The added burden of decision making, care giving and financial support to the child leaves a person to burnout and result in sleepless nights. The less sleep of single parents is because they do not have much time to take care of themselves. The number of single parents is on the rise and there is an increased pressure in their daily life that affects their quantity and quality of sleep due to over burden (Waldburger & Spivack p.221). Single mothers are another set of people who struggle to make money to meet the bills. While dealing with two jobs itself is stressful there are people who handle three jobs on a day and then comment that little time of sleep that amounts to around three and a half hours itself is not required. However, sleep experts argue that these people have continuous sleep deficit that is deteriorating them both mentally and physically. These people are lucky when compared to the numerous insomniacs who turn and toss the nights away. Economic pressure is the root cause for lessened sleep among people. The competitive pressure of corporate world is being transferred in the form of stress to employees. Corporate downsizing takes its toll on the sleep of employees. Workers are forced to complete the work which was done by two or three people earlier carrying a fear that they will be laid off any time. This fear causes stress and people tend to sleep less because they silently carry the over burden of doing two or more peoples job in the fear of losing their employment (Galant p.2). The global economic crisis is takings its toll on people in terms of less sleep because the corporate world is experiencing an exorbitant job cut. People sleep less because they are worried about their safety and health. Less sleep is emerging as a trend associated to economic fluctuations. A research by National Sleep Foundation indicates that around 13 percent of American population report sleep problems since 2001. The economic crisis has already reduced the number of sleep hours from eight hours a night. In the last eight years, people tend to sleep less than six hours. The impact of economic crisis is very strong because patients who take medical support for sleep disorders are unable to continue treatment because the patient or their family members do not have job to pay the medical expenses. Patients chose to stay without treatment for sleep apnea since they do not have adequate money to pay for the equipment and end up with a serious sleep disorder. The global credit crunch and the economic instability are adding to the less sleep trend (A third of Americans unable to sleep 2009). It may be concluded that people sleep less due to economic pressures, lack of time, work responsibilities and some people voluntarily chose to sleep less because they feel it is a waste of time. The post industrial economy is considered to be the main cause of reduced sleeping time among people. But this trend can be overcome by thoughtfully designing daily activities and by allocating more time for sleep. Therefore, more sleep can be possible by following a healthy lifestyle that includes the avoidance of certain food and late night work. The trend of sleeping less is an ongoing process that can cause various health hazards. Therefore people sleep less due to economic and social demands of the contemporary world that requires more time for activity and less allocation of time for sleep. Works Cited “A third of Americans unable to sleep amid economic crisis” 2009 April 28, 2009 http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/health/a-third-of -americans-unable-to-sleep-amid-economic-crisis_100161709. html Galant, Debbie “Sleepless In Secaucus” May 19, 1996 April 23, 2009 : 1-2. Waldburger, Jennifer & Spivack, Jill. “The Sleepeasy Solution: The Exhausted Parent's Guide to Getting Your Child to Sleep from Birth to Age 5” Florida: HCI Books, 2007: 221 Read More