Sleep Debt Hard to Repay

Jan. 15, 2010 -- Bouncing back from a few too many late nights may take more
than just sleeping in on the weekends.
A new study shows that the effects of long-term sleep deprivation, such as
working odd shifts or staying up late studying for exams over several days or
weeks, take more than a night or two of good sleep to make up for.
"Many people have a false sense of reassurance that they can quickly recover
from a chronic sleep debt with just one or two days of good sleep,�? researcher
Daniel Cohen, MD, of the division of sleep medicine at Brigham and Women’s
Hospital in Boston, says in a news release. “However, the lingering effect of
chronic sleep loss causes performance to deteriorate dramatically when these
individuals stay awake for an extended period of time, for example when they
try to pull an ‘all-nighter.’"
Researchers found that one long night of sleep can temporarily hide the
effects of sleep deprivation and restore performance to normal levels in the
short term for about six hours after waking. However, performance may worsen
the longer the person is awake, and there is an increased risk of
fatigue-related errors the longer the person stays awake.
“Individuals who get too little sleep during the work or school week but try
to catch up on weekends may not realize that they are accumulating a chronic
sleep debt,�? researcher Elizabeth Klerman, associate professor in the division
of sleep medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, says in the release. "This
may lead to a dangerous situation in which individuals do not realize the
extent of their sleep deprivation and their vulnerability to sudden sleepiness
when they try to drive or work late into the night."



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