The number of hours is quite variable and difficult to be scientifically evaluated. “In the record books, the maximum time achieved was 164 hours”, says neurologist Flávio Alóe, from the Center for Sleep Studies at the Hospital das Clínicas at USP.
But one of the cases most remembered by experts is a study, carried out in 1935, in which a 24-year-old young man slept just over five hours over a total period of almost ten days. “He believed that sleep was just a habit and, therefore, could be interrupted without harming health”, says biomedical doctor Deborah Suchecki, from the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp). From the fourth day onwards, the subject became increasingly confused and irrational. He no longer remembered where he was, began to present delusions and became so intractable that the project was stopped. Also, he could, that young man started from a wrong idea.
Sleep is essential for various activities and organic functions of our body. It plays a key role, for example, in learning ability and in the memory consolidation process. It also acts in the maturation of the nervous system, which is why children need to sleep more hours than adults. “It’s impossible to stay alert for very long without having brief episodes called microsleep. Sometimes, this can happen in a longer blink of an eye”, says Flávio. In this situation, the brain waves go into a mixed rhythm of sleep and wakefulness, even if the person is apparently awake.
Studies have already shown that healthy young people subjected to a period of four hours of sleep per day for six consecutive days present an increase in blood pressure, heart rate and blood glucose levels. “These alterations are similar to the characteristics of many elderly people and were interpreted by the researchers as if prolonged sleep restriction transformed the young organism into an elderly one”, says Deborah.
without sleeping a wink
What the lack of a good bed can bring as side effects after…
… 30 hours without sleep: the person has an irritable mood, their speed of reaction and reasoning drops, in addition to there being a loss of creativity
… More than 30 hours without sleep: the person becomes apathetic and presents confusion in the nervous system. She may also feel too cold or too hot, as well as hungry.
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