250,000 Nights of Sleep Measured in Global Study

The findings indicate that there are differences in the duration and timing of sleep by age, geographical region and gender. The timing of sleep was delayed among 16-24-year-old subjects, but in older subjects sleep was again timed earlier. "It was interesting to find that the circadian rhythm shifts later even in people over 20 years of age. It was already previously known that sleep timing is delayed in adolescence. What was clearly highlighted in this study is how long into adulthood this actually carries on," says Liisa Kuula, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Helsinki. People in Europe and North America slept the longest, while the shortest sleep was observed in Asian countries. Sleep was timed the latest in the Middle East, while the earliest sleep rhythm was found in Oceania. Young women slept more than young men, and the former also went to sleep earlier. "Geographical differences were relatively small but similar to those seen in prior, smaller-scale studies. The need for sleep does not vary greatly between cultures, but differences arise in terms of the time reserved for sleeping," Kuula notes. https://www.technologynetworks.com/neuroscience/news/250000-nights-of-sleep-measured-in-global-study-324488?utm_campaign=NEWSLETTER_TN_Breaking%20Science%20News&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=77446213&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9IByAjG8aCK18oZNaaXqL4pyzEEMRHSrXCUYSfqnVEpJBUds78GQvs45fXVnT1KLJ6KGLPseIfl81cL3SWTKYcE8ypGQ&_hsmi=77446213