Most people think that eight hours of sleep is the optimal number of hours. But experts from San Francisco (USA) in their new study dispelled this myth and explained that the number of hours needed for sleep is individual and depends on several factors. Experts identified a small group of people who were called the “sleeping elite” and said that the ability to sleep in a short time is due to genetics.
The official health guide issues a standard guide: adults need six to nine hours of sleep each night. But what makes people human is their differences. It can affect the duration of sleep as the specifics of the work performed during the day, the level of physical activity, etc. However, according to scientists, lifestyle is not the main thing when it comes to sleep duration. The scientists’ discovery could help pave the way for the fight against neurological diseases such as epilepsy and Alzheimer’s disease.
According to a new study published in the journal iScience, it all depends on genes. According to them, some people, and few of them, are the “sleeping elite” who show psychological resilience and resistance to neurodegenerative states. These people usually need only four or six hours of sleep to feel like a “cucumber”.
Leading author of the study, neurologist Luis Ptachek, commented: “There is a dogma in this area that everyone needs eight hours of sleep, but our work today confirms that the amount of sleep people need depends on genetics. Think of it as an analogy to growth. There is no perfect height, each person is individual. We have shown that the case with sleep is similar.
The team has been studying sleep patterns for over ten years. They studied people with family natural short sleep (FNSS), those who wanted to sleep four to six hours a day and were able to function without yawning and wanting to take a nap at every opportunity.
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This condition is inherited, and the team has identified five genes that play a role in effective sleep. To gather their results, they studied the “sleeping elite” and their risk of developing conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.
This study was performed on mice, not humans. They studied mice with certain sleep genes and measured their risk of developing dementia. They then repeated the study on mice with other neurological diseases to understand how improving people’s sleep can delay disease progression across a range of conditions.
However, they said that studying the genes associated with sleep would be like a “puzzle consisting of a thousand pieces.” “Sleep problems are common in all brain diseases. This makes sense because sleep is a complex activity. Many parts of your brain need to work together to make you fall asleep and wake up. When these parts of the brain are damaged, it becomes harder to fall asleep or get quality sleep, “- said the scientists.
Although it will take some time to identify all the genes, they noted that at least one of the ones they found could be targeted to existing drugs that could be repurposed. It is hoped that in the next decade they will have new treatments that will allow people with brain disorders to sleep better at night.
Earlier, the DIP wrote that “Scientists have named a plant that pumps oxygen into the bedroom, improving sleep and well-being.”