How Many Hours of Sleep You Need?

21 Mar 2021

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Are you missing out on your precious sleep while juggling office and home? Sleeping is the favourite hobby for most of us, but unfortunately, not many of us have enough time to sleep. Some are busy with raising kids and some are busy on laptops making money. But all of us dream about 5 minutes of extra sleep in the morning.

Sleep can affect everything, from your mood to your overall health. You may become cranky if you don’t get enough sleep. You even stand to develop many metabolic diseases because of inadequate sleep. Sleep is critical for a healthy, peaceful, and happy life. But in the current lifestyle, having enough sleep is a long-lost dream. Therefore, keeping a track of your sleep is extremely important.

You may have a constant wake-up time. Getting kids ready for school, having an early office, or going to the gym in the office may all fix your wake-up time. So how should you have enough sleep? You may change the time you go to bed. It may be tricky to do so. You may have a Netflix series you plan on binge-watching or a presentation due the next day. Figure out a way to make sure your body gets an optimal amount of sleep. But what is the optimal amount of sleep? How much sleep is enough?

How Many Hours of Sleep is Enough?

The optimal sleep schedule for each person depends on many factors, including their age groups. Although the recommended sleep for an adult is 7-9 hours, it may depend significantly on their health issues, their daily energy expenditure, physical activities, and their history of sleeping problems (1). Kids need more sleep than adults. Engaged in activities all day long, their cells never run out of power. More energy expenditure means more amount of sleep.

According to CDC (2), these are the recommended hours of sleep each night:

Newborn (0-3 months old): National Sleep Foundation (3) recommends 14-17 hours of sleep.
Infants (4-12 months old): 12-16 hours of sleep is generally recommended, including naps. (4)
Toddler (1-2 years old): 11-14 hours of sleep, including naps, is recommended for toddlers. (4)
Preschool (3-5 years old): 10-13 hours of sleep each night, including naps, is recommended. (4)
School-age (6-12 years old): 9-12 hours of sleep is usually recommended.
Teen (13-18 years old): 8-10 hours of sleep is generally recommended for teenagers.
Adults (18-64 years old): 7-9 hours of sleep is optimum.
Older Adults (64 or more years old): 7-8 hours of sleep each night is generally recommended.

It may not be possible to have the recommended amount of sleep every night. Life is a roller-coaster and sleep depends on how fast the ride is. Try to have enough sleep each night. But in case you miss it, don’t worry. Quality sleep is more important than having more sleep. You may compensate for the night’s sleep with a short daytime-nap. Although experts recommend avoiding naps, so that you may have a better night’s sleep. But in case you missed your due sleep at night, you may take a 20-min nap to recharge your body. (5)

With so many duties and responsibilities on your shoulder, sleep might take a backseat. But sleep is important, rather very important for your body. Make it a priority and put effort to have enough hours to sleep each night. Some easy tips can make your sleeping pattern better. Choose a comfortable temperature in the room. Avoid bedroom disruptions and avoid using electronic devices before sleeping. (1) These simple lifestyle habits will help you have a sound sleep at night.