Sleep – How much do you get a night?

How much importance do you place on sleep, the amount and quality?

As I see many people with fatigue and sleep issues I have written about melatonin and sleep before – click here to read

Here I want to talk about how much sleep is enough for each person and when you may be getting into sleep debt, what it looks like and ways to improve your sleep.

What is the general length of sleep requirements for each age group?

We always focus on babies and children getting enough sleep and aiming for day naps as when they are younger sleep requirements from 0 to 12 months of age is between 10 and 18 hours.

Toddlers and children, depending on age, sleep requirements average from 10 hours to 15 hours.

Teenagers on average should be getting around 9.25 hours per night.

Adults need on average 7-9 hours each night

Your genes can play a role as to whether your body is fine with less sleep, referred to as a “short hour sleeper” (sleeps less than 6 hours per night) or your body may be a “long sleeper” and needs more than 9 hours sleep.

We can all have different rhythms, so the amount of sleep that suits each person is very individual.

Sleep is needed to be restorative to the brain and the body, therefore the best duration of sleep is one the that gives optimal restorative value.  Brief, fragmented sleep has little to no restorative value and can impact the person in a similar way to sleep deprivation.

Sleep Debt

There is such a thing known as sleep debt.  Studies have shown that 4-6 hours of sleep per night can lead to deterioration in brain function such as mood, cognitive performance and alertness.

It is believed that 4 hours of acute sleep loss for 6 days can lead to the following:

1. 40% reduction in rate of glucose clearance
2. 30% reduction in insulin effectiveness
3. Decreased thyroid hormone
4. Increased evening cortisol
5. Increased sympathetic nervous system activity – fight/flight/freeze response therefore decreased para-sympathetic nervous system activity eg rest and digest
6. Decreased physical activity

This can present as:

1. Tired
2. Anxious/nervous
3. Unhappy
4. Sluggish
5. Difficulty making decisions and concentration
6. Not feeling alert or confident
7. Depressed
8. Not being successful at work

So not only does sleep debt cause fatigue and mood disturbances, but it can also affect what your hormones are doing.  There is also more chance of gaining weight or unable to loose weight due to sleep debt.  Leptin the hormone that makes us feel full and satisfied is considerably reduced in those with sleep debt.  Meanwhile Ghrelin, which is the hormone for hunger is elevated during the day for those in sleep debt. Therefore lower leptin levels and higher ghrelin levels can mean an increase in appetite and food intake for people having less sleep than they need.

So what can be done for better sleep?

Sleep Hygiene is a huge factor in helping sleep, although the below suggestions are not the only tips and there can be different things needed to be addressed for better sleep.  Having a consult with me might be something to consider to go through and work out what is happening with your sleep, stress, hormones etc.

But first, try out some of these sleep hygiene tips:

1. Avoid screens especially phones, tablets, laptops for at least 1-2 hours before bed
2. Have no electronics in the bedroom, especially devices
3. Eat dinner at least 1-2 hours before bed.  A very light snack if you are really hungry before bed would be ok
4. Avoid caffeine or alcohol before bed
5. Watch the sunset
6. Have a bedtime routine.  The same time you go to bed every night.  Should be before 10pm.  Try to stick to the same time getting up as well – approx. 8 hours after bedtime
7. Turn off lights at least 1 hour before bed.  Have dim lighting or just enough light to read by.
8. Make sure bedroom is dark, quiet, comfortable temperature and free of clutter
9. Be physically active during the day
10. Avoid wearing sunglasses every time you go outside during the day.  Allow your eyes to see regular daylight.

Reach out if you would like to book an appointment either in person, online or via the phone anywhere in Australia or internationally if you would like to discuss your sleep issues to help get you out of your sleep debt and back to enjoying life.

*References available upon request

  08/05/2026     Articles     0 Comment(s)