Sleep length?

Question

what are the effects of having too much/too little sleep?

Answer 1

YOU CAN NEVER GET ENOUGH SLEEP.......

NOT GETTING ENOUGH CAN MAKE YOU RESTLESS IRRITABLE.

sorry caps.

Answer 2

Sleep, by definition is a loss consciousness.
Sleep, is divided into 4 stages dependant upon delta waves.
1) 0% Delta
2) 20% Delta
3) 20% + 50% Delta
4) 50% plus Delta
3 +4 stages are collectivly as slow-wave sleep
So have good nights sleep

Answer 3

It depends how much you work in a day. If you really work hard then you need to sleep at least 8 hours. Well doctors also suggest 8 hours sleep is a prefect time for rest.

Answer 4

Effects can vary dramatically, however, sleeping for periods less than 8 Hours can cause; depression; muscular pains; change of temperament and reduced learning ability. More than 8 hours sleep can cause headaches; drowsiness and withdrawal. Note that this figure of recommended sleep is for healthy adults and for children it is recommended that they sleep for 9 hours.

Answer 5

Men who sleep too much or too little are at an increased risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, research shows six to eight hours of sleep was found to be most healthy. In contrast, men who reported they slept between five and six hours per night were twice as likely to develop diabetes and men who slept more than eight hours per night were three times as likely to develop diabetes.
See http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2006/03/sleep_diabetes.html
or http://www.yale.edu/opa/v34.n24/story1.html

Research also shows too-long and too-short sleep durations may be independently associated with an increased risk of heart disease in women.
See http://www.hno.harvard.edu/gazette/2003/01.30/12-sleep.html

If you want a bit more complex answer:
Among the documented effects are striking alterations in metabolic and endocrine function including decreased carbohydrate tolerance, insulin resistance, and lower levels of the hormone leptin leading to obesity..
There is a lot of interest in determining whether sleep disturbances such as a reduced amount of sleep or disorders like sleep apnea may actually worsen the metabolic syndrome. Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of risk factors including high blood pressure, obesity, high cholesterol and insulin resistance which increase the risk for heart disease and stroke.
See http://www.straightfromthedoc.com/50226711/too_much_or_too_little_sleep_increases_risk_of_diabetes_in_men.php

Answer 6

Effect depends very largely on one's personality.