THE EXPLOSIONof the Challenger space
shuttle. The Exxon Valdez oil spill. A
warship collision in 2017 that claimed
the lives of seven sailors. Implicated
in all these incidents? A lack of sleep.
Fatigue wreaks more havoc in our
lives than we realize, says Daniel Buysse,
M.D., UPMC professor of sleep medicine
and psychiatry at the University of
Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Research suggests, for example, that
if you sleep poorly, you’re 60 percent
more likely to be injured on the job than
colleagues who sleep well. And drowsy
drivers cause about 10 percent of car
wrecks, according to a 2018 report from
the American Automobile AssociationFoundation for Traffic Safety.
Sleeplessness has become an Ameri-
can epidemic. Eighty percent of U.S.
adults say that they have trouble sleep-
ing at least one night a week, according
to a new nationally representative
Consumer Reports survey of 1,767 peo-
ple. Four out of 10 toss and turn
most nights.
Our survey found that sleeplessness
affects people of all ages. The top
complaint among millennials is falling
asleep, while baby boomers are vexed
more by waking during the night.
Women are slightly more likely to
have received a diagnosis of insomnia,
meaning they can’t sleep despite ampletime in bed. Men are more likely to
receive a diagnosis of sleep apnea, a
condition in which breathing stops
briefly, repeatedly waking the sleeper.
Thirty percent of U.S. adults—an
estimated 83 million people—told us
that poor sleep negatively affects
their quality of life.
“How long we sleep affects our
hormones that regulate appetite,
immune function, and the neural
circuits in the brain that govern our
ability to think and how we feel,”
Buysse says. It increases the risk of
diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity,
and heart disease. “How you sleep
affects literally everything.”Sick and Tired?
... of not being able to sleep soundly? Many Americans are using supplements, alcohol, and medications
that not only don’t work well but also may be making them ill. Learn what’s safe and effective.CR.ORG GUIDE TO WELLNESS 69