A lack of sleep can crush your sex drive ? or even kill you.
A new survey by the National Sleep Foundation found 36 percent of Americans have fallen asleep behind the wheel, and one in five has lost sex drive because of a lack of sleep.
The prime culprit: long work hours.
It?s time to rethink our sleep habits, said Dr. Robert Lehman, a Pikesville psychiatrist specializing in sleep disorders.
“Insomnia impairs daytime functioning, contributes to motor-vehicle accidents and industrial accidents, and causes people to fall asleep while at work,” Lehman said.
He blames Americans? hyper work ethic, and not just among the medical intern putting in 110-hour weeks or the rookie lawyer?s 16-hour days.
“Longer workdays and more access to colleagues and the workplace through the Internet and other technology appear to be causing Americans to get less sleep,” said Darrel Drobnich, the Sleep Foundation?s CEO.
He added sleep-deprived employees cost U.S. companies tens of billions of dollars a year in lost productivity.
Americans spend an average of 4 1/2 hours a week working from home, on top of a 9 1/2-hour workday, the poll found.
The shut-eye shortage also can be deadly.
Each year, drowsy drivers cause at least 100,000 accidents reported to police, and the crashes kill more than 1,550 Americans, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates.
But there?s hope for those who crave a good night?s sleep, Lehman said, in the form of new, nonaddictive drugs that can be used for longer periods and a growing awareness of the need for sleep.
Sleep has also become a big business ? from Tempur-Pedic and Sleep Number mattresses starting around $1,500 to a startling array of sleep masks, aromatherapy, white-noise generators and other sleep aids.
Many solutions come cheap or free: Eliminate noise and light from your sleeping area. Draw your blinds or wear a sleep mask. Turn off the TV, radio, computer or anything else that makes noise or has a bright light-emitting diode.
“Sleep is being talked about, and it?s being reported more,” Lehman said. “The awareness of it, the treatability, has been improved.”
