Sleep

Sleep

On a quiet night, I can imagine hearing faint echoes of my mother yelling for me to put down the comic book and get to bed. My brain and I thank you for your diligent parenting, Mom. Everyone knows that sleep matters. But do you appreciate how important it is to your brain? When you stay up late to hang out with friends or watch TV, your brain suffers severely. Shorting it a few hours of sleep may be the rough equivalent of whacking yourself in the head with a croquet mallet. Insufficient sleep can reduce concentration, alertness, and the abilities to learn, problem solve, and remember. And, of particular interest to aspiring skeptics, a tired brain is less efficient at reasoning, assessing claims, and dismantling bad beliefs.

A well-rested brain is an alert brain. A sleepy brain is a goofy brain and, in some cases, a dangerous one. An estimate by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration puts the number of police-reported car crashes in the United States due to sleepy drivers at 100,000 per year. These accidents account for more than 1,500 deaths, 71,000 injuries, and a financial cost of more than $12 billion.11 Most responsible people wouldn’t think of showing up at work or school drunk or driving under the influence of alcohol. But how many of us have turned up for work or school with a sleep-deprived brain or driven while under the influence of a sleepy brain? One problem with getting enough sleep is that scientists can’t even say for sure how much of it we need. There is too much variation and there are too many factors involved to determine a specific amount that is best for everyone. Seven to nine hours seems to work for many, but you might be fine with just six, or you might require no less than ten. Whatever your number is, you need to figure it out and adjust your life accordingly. Probably the simplest way to discover your personal sleep needs is to keep a simple diary for a few weeks. Nothing too complicated, just log how many hours you sleep each night and how you feel during the days. Over time, this might reveal if you are more or less alert and productive based on the number of hours you sleep.

Don’t forget to work in brief afternoon naps when you can. Brains love them. Sleeping well and enough is like eating well and staying physically active—you have to pay attention and do the right thing most of the time, otherwise you will be burdened with a substandard brain. If that’s not enough to motivate you, maybe fear of pain and death will. Failing to get enough sleep over long periods of time increases your chances of getting a variety of diseases and dying early. Sleep deprivation has been linked to significantly higher risk for heart disease, cancer, diabetes, strokes, and obesity.12

What the brain does during sleep is still mysterious in many ways. It certainly doesn’t seem to actually rest while we are asleep. According to brain scientist Medina, it’s buzzing with activity, probably replaying what we learned and experienced the previous day.13 It’s thought that all this activity is necessary to sort out our memories and file them away for future use. Whatever our brains are doing during sleep, it’s definitely important and critical to the quality of the following day. Make sure you remember that there is no ambiguity here, no doubt whatsoever about the devastating effect missing sleep has on mental processes. Moms are right. Get to bed on time!