Scientists from Cambridge, Oxford, Harvard, Manchester and Surrey universities have warned that cutting sleep can lead to ‘serious health problems.’ Indeed, the problem is so great that they are advocating that the population in general and governments in particular should address the issue as a matter of importance.
Because humans are holistic, the sleep deprivation can affect both our mental and physical states. The consequences can be the reduction in alertness, fluctuations in moods, diminishment of physical strength and even the risk of a heart attack during the course of its daily rhythm.
The scientists have pinpointed the culprit to being the modern way of life and, in particular, a 24/7 lifestyle so that people are now ‘living against’ their body with the inevitable consequences for health and wellbeing that will arise from that course of action.
Russell Foster, a professor at the University of Oxford, stated that people were experiencing between one and two hours less sleep than people were having sixty years ago. He commented: ‘What we do as a species, perhaps uniquely, is override the clock. And long-term acting against the clock can lead to serious health problems.’
Professor Foster stated that it was an issue for society as a whole and not solely for shift workers. He highlighted that it was an acute problem for teenagers. There were children, in his experience, who had slept by swallowing their parents’ sleeping pills in the evening and then downed three Red Bulls to reinvigorate themselves in the morning (which is full of caffeine and such absorption is beyond the maker’s recommendations).
There is increasing evidence that modern technology is keeping us up later at night, beyond catching up with e-mails, updating our Twitter and/or Facebook accounts, or playing computer games, for the devices themselves are causing havoc to our wellbeing.
Professor Charles Czeisler of Harvard University stated that ‘Light is the most powerful synchroniser of your internal body clock.’ He has identified that energy efficient light bulbs, smartphones, tablets and computers all have high levels of light emission in the blue end of the spectrum which is ‘right in the sweet spot’ for causing disruption in the body clock.
Professor Czeisler continued: ‘Light exposure, especially short wavelength in the evening, will reset our circadian rhythms to a later hour, postponing the release of the sleep-promoting hormone melatonin and making it more difficult for us to get up in the morning.
‘It’s a big concern that we’ve been exposed to much more light, sleeping less and, as a consequence, may suffer from many chronic diseases.’
It has been estimated that approximately 10 per cent of human DNA has a 24-hour pattern of activity, which determines all of the behavioural and physiological changes of a person. The research revealed that the rhythm of this behaviour can be disrupted by short sleep patterns or shift work. Dr Simon Archer of the University of Surrey stated: ‘These are all fundamental biological pathways that can be underlying links to some of the negative health outcomes that we see such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, obesity and potentially cancer in people who don’t get enough sleep or do shift work.’
Because ‘I am fearfully and wonderfully made’ (Psalm 139: 14) by God that He knows how much sleep we require. There is the promise that, if we trust in God, ‘when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.’ (Proverbs 3: 24).
As temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6: 19), we should look after our bodies – which means making every effort to get enough sleep.
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