Stats & Facts About Sleep (Infographic)

Published with permission: 

written by Dr. Nikola Djordjevic, MD May 21, 2019

Along with proper nutrition and regular exercise, sleep plays a major role in our health. With this compilation of interesting facts and statistics about sleep, we hope you will gain insight and recognize the importance of sleep in your daily lives. The significance of the positive, as well as negative effects of sleep, should not be ignored, or taken for granted.

Eye-Opening Sleep Statistics About Sleep

• Between 50 and 70 million people in the US suffer from a chronic sleep disorder.
• Approximately 35% of US adults get less than the recommended 7 hours of sleep per night.
• 45% of Americans report that inadequate sleep affected their daily activities.
• Most healthy adults need at least 7 hours of sleep a night to feel rested.
• 10% of US adults have chronic insomnia.
• More than 25 million Americans suffer from obstructive sleep apnea.
• Approximately 4% of Americans used prescription sleeping pills in the previous month.
• 24.4% of surveyed parents often share their bed with their infants.

Historical Sleep Trends

Before the Industrial Revolution

The belief in the importance and significance of sleep dates back to 800 BC during the time when Egyptians, Greeks and Romans worshipped gods of sleep. It was in the 17th century when the French scientists started recording dreams in their diaries.

After the Industrial Revolution

This is the period when sleeping pills were first discovered and consumed. 

The Last 25 Years

 This generation has put more focus not just on sleep, but in HOW to get proper sleep. 

Stages of Sleep

In the course of the night, the body goes through a sleep cycles 4-5 times. Each cycle is made up of 5 stages and lasts between 90 - 120 minutes.

The Right Amount of Sleep

The recommended length of a good night sleep is between 6 - 8 hours. Sleep deprivation or getting less sleep than what the body needs could cause a lot of health problems including:  obesity, diabetes, inflammation and cardiovascular disease.

Sleep Duration Recommendations by Age

One could see from the able below that the younger we are, the more sleep we need. The recommended 6-8 hours of sleep is for adults. Kids and teenagers require more than that for their physical and mental development.

Daily Naps

Deal with daytime sleepiness with a nap. The best time to nap is at 1pm, but for night owls, nap at 3pm works better.

Nap Length for Desired Effect

Reality of Sleep Duration Worldwide

According to studies, 50% of people are getting insufficient sleep (less than the 6-8 hours of recommended sleep duration).