The Tired Twenties
The news keeps rolling in about young adults and sleepand none of it is good.
The National Sleep Foundations 2000 Sleep in America poll shows that 42% of adults ages 18-29 suffer from chronic sleep deprivation. According to the poll, the sleep deprivation is so severe that it rivals the notoriously sleep-deprived lives of shift workers.
Whats the reason? Too much to do, report half the respondents. 52% report sacrificing sleep to get more done, while 55% acknowledge frequent late nights watching television and surfing the Internet.
Does sleepiness affect work, or put us at increased risk for injury or death? Yes againon all three counts. 20% of this age group admit to occasionally or frequently being late for work due to sleepiness, while 60% admit to driving drowsy.
Whats the kicker? One in five young adults admits to having dosed off behind the wheel in the last year alone!
Thats a lot of very tired high achievers, whose drive in the fast lane of life might just turn into a nightmare behind the wheel. The number one advice for this tired age group? Sleep before you drive, even if its only a twenty minute power nap, and dont forget to drink (more?) caffeine when youre on the road, to help keep alert.
If you plan ahead, youll Arrive Alive.