How Much Sleep We Need in Various Life Stages

Sleep is an indispensible part of our lives, or at least as long as we want our bodies to operate long and well. As we grow older we don't really need less of it; it is just a myth that the elderly sleep only a couple of hours a day. Today you will find out how much sleep particular age groups actually need.

The sleepless record belongs to a 17-year-old American boy called Randy Gardner who in 1964 spent 11 days and 25 minutes without sleeping.

In March 2021 a panel of doctors, scientists and employees of a non-profit National Sleep Foundation published the findings of their research, showing how much sleep particular age groups really need.

The new-born (0 – 3 months old): 14 – 17 hours per day

Babies (4-11 months old): 12 – 15 hours per day

Small children (1 – 2 years old): 11 – 14 hours per day.

Kindergarten children ( 3- 5 years old): 10 – 13 hours per day

School children ( 6 – 13 years old): 9 – 11 hours per day

Teenagers (14 – 17 years old): 8 – 10 hours per day

Young adults (18 – 25 years old): 7 – 9 hours per day

Adults: (26 – 64) 7 – 9 hours per day

Senior adults (over 65 years old): 7 – 8 hours per day

The appropriate amount of sleep is of vital importance for our bodies so getting too little sleep is definitely not recommended. Thanks to sleep our bodies can regenerate, we are able to concentrate more effectively, our metabolisms is not disturbed and our immunity system works much better too. This is also a priceless opportunity for brain cells to regenerate.

Overwhelmed with duties we do not consider sleeping as a priority and ignore the following warning messages that our bodies send when they need more sleep:

• you can't wake up without the alarm clock,

• you need some extra time to get up,

• you feel sleepy while commuting to work or school,

• in the afternoon your eye lid get so heavy you can't resist taking a nap,

• you can't concentrate during meetings or lectures,

• you look forward to sleeping all weekend long,

• you drop off while watching TV in the evening.

There is no way you can get enough sleep to save it for a rainy day. It's like taking out garbage. The fact that you do it more often does not mean that you produce less garbage.

In fact getting too much sleep has got some serious consequences, too. We are more susceptible to migraines or depression. The risk of diabetes or increased blood pressure increases, too. Not to mention frequent pains in your back.