Women need more sleep than men, according to a study
Who does not like to stay in bed for a while in the morning or take a nap after lunch to regain strength?
If you asked us if there are differences between men and women in the amount of sleep we need, and if they asked us which of the two groups would need more sleep, surely many of us would not imagine that science would eventually discover that there are differences between both sexes in this sense. According to a recent investigation, Women need more sleep to have better health and greater well-being .
Women need more sleep to be healthier
But does this mean that women are more lazy than men? Evidently, no.
The study seems to indicate that, to recover from the fatigue caused by daily activities, women need to sleep 20 more minutes a day . So, considering this, if you're a man and you sleep next to a woman at night, when you get up in the morning, it's worth it just in case you let her rest a little more than you before waking her up.
What was the investigation?
The research was carried out by the Sleep Studies Center of the University of Loughborough, in the United Kingdom, and, further, concluded that, the more an individual uses the brain during the day, the more hours of sleep he needs to recover .
It seems that, as women tend to take on different tasks alternating their work, caring for children, housework, shopping ... These activities involve a great energy expenditure for the brain, so they need to sleep plus. In contrast, men, who still tend today not to take up much of the domestic tasks, have a minor mental waste.
However, Does that mean that men are lazy? The truth is that no. According to the director of the study, Professor Jim Horne, "The cause of this lies in the fact that a woman's brain is much more complex than that of a man." And concludes, "the woman's brain connects differently than the man's and that's why she has a greater capacity for concentration that allows her to be aware of several things at the same time".
According to several studies, on average, an individual needs to sleep between 6 and 8 hours to recover from day to day and the exhaustion of activities carried out throughout the day. In addition, scientists have also found out that women's insomnia is associated with high levels of anguish, depression and anger.
How to know if you are not getting enough sleep?
Insomnia brings with it serious negative consequences for the person who suffers it, as well as the presence of psychological disorders associated with inadequate rest.
Unfortunately, this is frequent in the times we live, and Many people experience this situation that can cause serious problems for their health . But what are the warning signs when we do not get enough sleep? Below you can find a list with 7 signs that warn you that you are not sleeping the necessary hours:
1. Irritability and depression
Different investigations have confirmed that lack of sleep can lead to depression and to be more irritated and worse mood than usual. According to a study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania, Participants who slept 4.5 hours a day for a period of one week showed a higher level of stress , irritability, sadness and psychological and emotional exhaustion.
2. Difficulty in making decisions
Lack of sleep can cause concentration problems and can affect our mental clarity . That is why, both in the study and at work, lack of sleep can cause us to make wrong decisions.
3. Problems with memory
Attention is essential when storing memories and learning, so if we do not sleep enough, this mental faculty can be affected . Sleeping between 6 and 8 hours a day is enough to be alert and to take full advantage of our memory skills.
4. Vision problems
When you sleep little, your eyes become fatigued, so they do not clean and refresh properly. This has negative consequences on the quality of the visió n .
5. Less desire to have intimate relationships
The desire to have intimate relationships is affected by the lack of rest, because people who do not get enough sleep are more exhausted, drowsy and, moreover, they have a higher blood pressure .
6. Increase the desire to eat more
The lack of sleep creates an imbalance in our body, which causes the appetite to increase.This is due to anxiety caused by insomnia, which leads a person to eat more food, especially those with high fat content. This can lead to an increase in adipose tissue .
7. Increased stress
Lack of sleep causes our stress tolerance to drop . Also, after a bad night, they increase the levels of cortisol, a hormone related to stress.
You can delve into these points in our article: "7 psychological signals that indicate that you are not getting enough sleep"The benefits of napping
Napping provides many benefits for both health and productivity at work.
That's why different companies, such as Google, Nike, AOL or The New York Times they give their workers time to enjoy this typically Spanish custom in the same place of work that perform their professional functions. Taking a nap helps to recover energy, be in a better mood, improve learning, improve the memory capacity and work better.
Do you want to know more about the benefits of "napping? In our article "The 3 psychological benefits of napping" you will find all the information you need.
