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Sleep Facts |
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* Some 70 million people in the US have a sleep problem. About 40 million adults suffer from a chronic sleep disorder; an additional 20-30 million have intermittent sleep-related problems. * Effects of sleep loss on work performance may be costing US employers some $18 billion in lost productivity. * America's adults average 6.9 hours of sleep each night, slightly less than the range of 7-9 hours recommended by many sleep experts. * Three-quarters of America's adults (75%) said they frequently experienced at least one symptom of a sleep problem in the past year. * More than 3/4 of America's partnered adults (77%) say their partner nas a sleep-related problem; the most common problem is snoring. * One-quarter of America's adults, 47 million people, don't get the minimum amount of sleep they say they need to be alert the next day. * People who are already hypertensive may increase their risk of heart attack or stroke if they fail to get adequate sleep. * Shift workers are 30%-50% more likely to develop heart disease than day workers in the same industry. * More than 1/2 of America's adults nap at least once a week. * While the majority of America's adults do not use anything to help them sleep, for those who do use a sleep aid, alcohol appears to be the most popular choice; 11% of adults said they used alcohol, beer, or wine at least a few nights a month, 9% used over-the-counter sleep aids, 7% said they used prescription sleep medications. * About 6 in 10 adults licensed to drive (60%), or about 118 million people, said they have driven drowsy at least once in the past year. * 17%, 32 million people, said they fell asleep at the wheel. * According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, at least 100,000 police-reported crashes are caused by drowsy drivers each year. These crashes result in more than 1,500 deaths and 71,000 injuries. |
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