Harvard Professor Says Adults Need 6.4-7.8 Hours of Sleep, Not 8
Updated
Updated · AlterNet · Jun 7
Harvard Professor Says Adults Need 6.4-7.8 Hours of Sleep, Not 8
1 articles · Updated · AlterNet · Jun 7
Summary
6 hours 24 minutes to 7 hours 48 minutes is the adult sleep “sweet spot,” Daniel E. Lieberman wrote, arguing the long-standing eight-hour rule overstates what most people need.
A recent Nature study of hundreds of thousands of self-reported sleep records linked both shorter and longer sleep to faster aging, higher rates of heart disease and depression, and shorter lifespans.
Lieberman said the evidence against sleeping more than 7.8 hours is weaker because the study shows association, not causation, relies on inaccurate self-reporting, and drew mostly on people of European ancestry.
35% of Americans report getting less than seven hours of sleep, which he called the bigger concern, while warning that overmedicalizing insomnia can worsen anxiety and sleep problems.
Instead of chasing exactly eight hours, he urged people to judge whether sleep leaves them functional during the day and to use regular schedules, exercise and cognitive behavioral therapy to improve it.