what is sleep debt

Sleep debt, also known as sleep deficit, is the difference between how much sleep you need and how much you actually get. It is cumulative, meaning that if you regularly get less sleep than you should, you’re going to have more sleep debt. For example, if your body needs eight hours of sleep per night but you only get six, you have accumulated two hours of sleep debt. Sleep debt can quickly add up from common activities like working, commuting, socializing, relaxing, and watching shows. As sleep debt builds, brain and body functioning deteriorate. Sleep is needed to “pay down” this debt. Chronic sleep deficiency or insufficient sleep can describe ongoing sleep deprivation as well as poor sleep that occurs because of sleep fragmentation or other disruptions. Sleep deprivation can cause a state known as fatigue. Sleep debt can negatively impact your health, since getting inadequate sleep over a series of days causes sleep debt to progressively build day by day. The consequences of not sleeping enough include reduced cognitive function, mood changes, increased risk of accidents, and a weakened immune system. To minimize sleep debt, regularly get the length of sleep you need to feel rested when you awaken. If you have built up sleep debt, allow extra time for sleep: go to bed early. You sleep more deeply when you are sleep deprived, so you do not need to “pay back” hour for hour the lost sleep. However, if you have not had enough sleep for many days, it might take several nights of good-quality sleep to recover.