The science of how much sleep you actually need

Getting plenty of sleep each night is important to maintaining a healthy and productive life. But how much sleep do you actually need?

Joe Avella and Jessica Orwig tackle this question on the Facebook series "Science the $#!* out of it."

For the average adult, the National Sleep Foundation recommends 7 to 9 hours of sleep a night.

Today, however, many Americans are sleep-deprived, which can have significant adverse effects on physical and cognitive functions.

The reason why some people don’t get enough sleep can be accredited to busy modern lifestyles. But there are other reasons too.

It turns out habits such as using electronic devices or drinking alcohol right before bedtime can be detrimental to getting a good night’s sleep.

[Isodkd]

This guy looks 20 and 60 at the same time

[gavin]

Her: What’s something new you want to do in bed together?
Me: Get 8 hours of sleep

[No_timezone]

The counting sheep thing? Yeah that doesn't work

[danyala.]

I've been sleeping 5 hours since the day entered High School.

This explains alot.

[rishisali]

Everyone's saying their acting is cringy but I actually find this pretty funny and interesting actually..Its better to learn things like this.😀

[nxt_tim]

Or just activate the bluelight filter from your smartphone and everything is fine 😃

Edit 2 years later: No, it's not fine. Please don't spend too much time on the phone before going to sleep, even with a blue light filter it still emits lots of light directly into your eyes.

[thebusinesschannel]

*THUMBNAIL LOOKS LIKE A CORPS IN A FUNERAL*

[andrewreyna]

Her: set a time for bed.
Me: ok... 12pm.

[gn]

We need more of this SS2OI videos. They say the same exact thing of all the other Science channels out there but this also shows the kind of human reaction I, and you, would have. C'mon C'mon C'mon

[SajjadAli-pxju]

Thank you. That was amazing. Good learning process.

[ashish]

You know how u can sleep fast, just think about stuff u want to happen in your life the brain get relaxed and there is not so much stress on it.

[captainsparklezx]

What about listening to music while you sleep? I sometimes put headphones in with some music on and wake up in the middle of the night (usualy around 2 AM)and just take them out. My music is always on the lowest volume and my ears dont ring or hurt when I wake up.

[abdulrahmansaeed]

No .. please don't mess up the channel

[harshkhurana]

This is one of the best series i have watched on YouTube

[unidentified]

@Tech Insider

You guys are doing a great Job. Looking for more fun and interactive videos like this. #Kudos

[JFJK]

Odd thing i do when im tired but cant seem to drift off to sleep. I roll my ankle back and forth from side to side, usually my right foot for some reason, stretch your big toe to the left, your pinky toe to the right, or even make a tapping action with your foot, make the heel stretch back inverting your achilles then relax (should feel like your tapping your sole on something thats not there. This might sound stupid and may or may not work, but its something i do and seems to work, everyones different though.

[yukiannie]

Im a night owler too...hoping i could get more sleep in the morning but i cant...so i feel miserable the whole day...i can totally relate with that guy

[adam_papamastorakis]

Almost at 1M subs dude, you got this, wish you the best:)

[POH]

Tech insider: how much sleep do u need?
Me: a lot

[bedheadacademic]

It’s not that I’m on my phone late at night or that I can’t sleep. It’s that I have 65 hour work weeks and still want to have time to exist outside of work.