Getting the right amount of sleep is often an indication of good physical and mental health. Yet, the modern age doesn’t always allow us to get a wholesome sleep every night. Unfortunately, factors like work shifts, stress and even excessive use of technology heavily affect the cardiac rhythm. This alters the sleep cycle and quality, thereby causing a host of health ailments. We have previously covered topics like how food can help with better sleep, how consciously adapting the right sleeping position can ensure you don’t wake up tired, and unconventional sleep techniques to help you get the rest for being productive the next day. However, to ripe the benefits of the above-mentioned tips, it is essential to sleep the right amount to feel rested, recovered and energized for the next day.
How Much Sleep Do We Really Need?
The common consensus is that adults need an average of eight hours of sleep every night for the body to reset and for the brain to complete all its tasks like memory consolidation, immunity building and removal of toxins. But the amount of sleep differs among different age groups. The National Sleep Foundation believes the following reflects the right number of sleeping hours as per the age based on their research --
Age Group | Hours of Sleep |
Newborns: 0-3 months | 14 to 17 |
Infants: 4-11 months | 12 to 15 |
Toddlers: 1-2 years | 11 to 14 |
Preschoolers: 3-5 years | 10 to 13 |
School-aged children: 6-13 years | 9 to 11 |
Teenagers:14-17 years | 8 to 10 |
Young adults: 18-25 years | 7 to 9 |
Adults: 26-64 years | 7 to 9 |
Older adults≥: 65 years | 7 to 8 |
Source: Sleep Health
Resultantly, this study also indicated that there could be a minor deviation of sleep duration amongst various age ranges, but a significant deviation is unusual and could be a symptom for a health problem or indication of poor health.
Sleep Quality
Getting the right amount of sleep is not a singular factor to determine good health. The quality of sleep weighs equally on how well your body is resting. You might be in bed for eight hours but that need not necessarily mean you are sleeping the right amount. In light of this, if you or your family member suffer for lack of sleep or oversleeping, snoring, sleep apnea, difficulty breathing during sleep or insomnia, visit a professional doctor to understand the underlying cause of such sleep disruption.
A Quick Guide on Sleeping Better
To ensure you get the right amount of sleep along with the good quality of sleep, adapt the following as part of your daily lifestyle routine:
- Exercise regularly.
- Set a sleep schedule to go to bed and wake up at the same time. This will set your internal clock to automatically sleep those given hours.
- Maintain a conducive sleeping environment that is relaxing and calming. Switch to bamboo sheets. They are not only environmentally sustainable, but also give you utmost comfort to sleep like a baby. Check out our premium line of luxury bamboo sheets to get your hands on one today!
Finally, and the most important of all, keep track of your sleep patterns to identify early onset of any health ailments.