Are South Africans getting enough sleep?
Studies show that people miss out on one to one and a half hours of sleep per night - and catching up on sleep is not possible - here's the sleeping state of South Africa.
Photo: Unsplash/Kinga Howard
We’ve probably all tried to make up for lost sleep during the week by lying in over the weekend to “catch-up” on sleep, but does catch-up sleep work?
Lester Kiewit speaks to Dale Rae, Associate Professor, University of Cape Town (UCT) and Director at Sleep Science Pty Ltd.
South Africans are tired and feelings of exhaustion loom for most, affecting the health and productivity of individuals and the nation.
Ideally, people should be getting between seven to nine hours of sleep at night, says Rae.
While most people miss out on one to one and a half hours of sleep per night, it is "completely impossible" to pay back sleep debt by "catching up on sleep," notes Rae.
Are South Africans sleeping enough?
"Many South Africans are sleeping in excessive hours sometimes over 10 hours so it's very different and linked to poverty and other situational indicators. People from low income settings tend to be really long sleepers on average. Some employed individuals who earn a higher income sleep around six to seven hours."
- Dale Rae, Associate Professor - University of Cape Town (UCT)
Most people from low income backgrounds tend to nap and "catch up" on sleep during the day, notes Rae.
"We wonder if long sleep during the day can be explained by poor quality sleep during the day. Fear for safety at night time that intrudes on sleep. What we see is people taking any opportunity to catch up on missed sleep like dosing off on their commute on public transport or with kids at school during a lesson - it's at any opportune time."
- Dale Rae, Associate Professor - University of Cape Town (UCT)
While the optimal amount of sleep can improve mood and memory, a lack of sleep can cause procrastination, slower thinking and block creativity in personal and professional life.
For companies, Rae notes that sleepy employees have a "massive impact on a company's bottom."
"We noticed that employees who haven't had good sleep are less productive and often make mistakes that could be quite costly and in some industries, it can relate to having more accidents if you're driving or operating heavy machinery."
- Dale Rae, Associate Professor - University of Cape Town (UCT)
"Employers are taking sleep among employees seriously because it affects them financially so there tends to be more focus on employee wellness to get the best out of them."
- Dale Rae, Associate Professor - University of Cape Town (UCT)
Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the full conversation.