According to Charles A. Czeisler, professor of sleep medicine at Harvard Medical School stated “’ people sleep an hour to an hour and a half less a night, on average, than they did 50 years ago”. The United States is SLEEP-DEPRIVED and this has an negative effect on workplace safety, employee health and productivity. According to Czeisler insomnia costs the country $63 billion a year in lost productivity. Furthermore, inadequate sleep is linked to cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease, he said. People getting less than six hours of sleep at night are five times more likely to be obese and have a 56 percent increase in risk for Type 2 diabetes.
Sleep deprivation is on the rise because of these factors:
- Longer commutes to work.
- More time spent indoors away from natural light that tells the body when it’s time to go to sleep.
- More medical conditions like sleep apnea, which can be brought on by obesity and a sedentary lifestyle.
- Omnipresent screens, such as smartphones that emit blue light that make it harder to fall asleep.
- A culture that values overwork.
Companies an be compassionate employers by educating the workforce on the importance of sleep, how to deal with sleep disorders, safety concern of employees based on lack of sleep, and sleep screenings for apnea. Bottom line sleep helps both mental and physical well being!