June 25, 2020
Did you know about, sleep? 💤
The team at Sleep Tight Science is feeling really sleepy! You guessed it, we're going to be talking all about sleep. I hope you will be able to stay awake and learn more about sleep with us on this episode of Sleep Tight Science.
Thank you for listening,
Sheryl & Clark
❤️🔬
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Transcript
00:00:00
Speaker 1: You're listening to sleep tight science. Did you know that the average person sleeps for about one third of their life. That means if a person is thirty three years old, they have slept for eleven years. Wow. So why do we sleep? We sleep so that our brains and our bodies can develop and grow. Our brain needs sleep so we can remember what we learned, so we can pay attention and concentrate, and so we can solve problems and think of new ideas. Though no one is exactly sure what work the brain does when you're sleeping, some scientists think that the brain sorts through and stores information, replaces chemicals, and solves problems while you snooze. Our bodies need sleep so our muscles, bones, and skin can grow, so that our muscles, skin, and other parts can fix injuries, and so our body can stay healthy and fight sickness. When your body doesn't have enough hours to rest, you may feel tired or cranky, or you may be unable to think clearly. You might have a hard time following directions, or you might have an argument with a friend about something really silly. A school assignment that's normally easy peasy may feel impossible, and you may even feel clumsy playing your favorite sport or instrument. This is what makes sleep very important. Kids ages five to twelve need about eleven hours of sleep each night. And when you get enough sleep, you can pay attention in school better, you can be more creative and think of new ideas. You can fight sickness so you stay healthy. You're probably going to be in a good mood, going to get along with your friends and family, and you'll probably even be able to solve problems better. When you don't get enough sleep, you might forget what you have learned. You might have trouble making good choices. You might be grumpy and be in a bad mood. You might have trouble playing games and sports. You might be less patient with your brothers, sisters, and friends. And you might have trouble listening to parents and teachers. So what does all this talk about the different stages of sleep. As you're drifting off to sleep, it doesn't seem like much is happening. The room is getting fuzzy and your eyelids feel heavier. But what happens next. Your brain swings into action and it tells your body how to sleep, and as you slowly fall asleep, you begin to enter the five different stages of sleep Stage one. In this stage, which is light sleep, your body starts to feel a bit drowsy, but you can still be woken up easily during this stage. For example, if someone talks to you or you hear a sound outside, you'll probably wake up right away. After a little while, you enter stage two, which is a slightly deeper sleep. Your brain gives the signal to your muscles to relax. It also tells your heart to beat a little slower and your breathing to slow down. Even your body temperature drops a bit. Stage three. When you are in this stage, you are in an even deeper sleep. Your brain sends a message to your blood pressure to get lower. Your body is not as sensitive to temperature or the air around you, which means you won't notice if it's a little hot or cold in your room, and it is much harder to be woken up when you're in this stage. Some people may sleep walk or sleep talk at this point. Point. Stage number four is the deepest sleep stage yet. It is very hard to wake up from this stage of sleep, and if you do wake up, you're sure to be confused for at least a few minutes. Like stage three, some people may sleep walk or talk in their sleep. When going from stage four to a lighter stage of sleep, do you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep. The rest of the family is asleep and you're just laying there wide awake. What can you do? Sit up or get up, sit in a chair, get a book to read but not too exciting, or you might want to finish it. Listen to music for a while, or write a letter. You could count some people. Imagine a flock of sheep and start counting them. You could do some slow breathing, counting as you breathe in and counting as you breathe out. I bet you can think of lots of quiet things to do. You don't want to wake anybody else up. Some things that you shouldn't do are watching TV or playing on the computer or checking your phone. It can be hard to stop when you need to go to sleep. Lots of kids are not getting enough sleep because they won't turn their devices off. But when you start to feel tired, go back to bed, close your eyes, then sleep. So how do we establish a good bedtime routine for most kids? Sleeping comes pretty naturally, but here are some tips to help you catch all the disease you need. Try to go to bed at the same time every night. This helps your body get into a routine. Follow a bedtime routine that is common, such as taking a warm bath or my favorite reading. Limit foods and drinks that contain caffeine. These include some sodas and other drinks like iced tea. Don't have a TV in your room. Research shows that kids who have a TV in their room sleep less. Don't exercise just before going to bed. Exercising earlier in the day at least two to three hours before sleeping helps a person sleep better. And use your bed just for sleeping, not doing homework, not playing games or talking on the phone. That way, you'll teach your body to associate your bed with sleep. If you have a hard time falling asleep for more than one or two nights, or you have some worries that are keeping you for sleeping, tell your mom or dad. They can help you solve your sleep problems. In fact, just talking about it with them could you help you relax just enough that you'll be ready to sleep. Here are some fun facts about sleep. Sea otters hold hands when they sleep so they don't drift away from each other. About seventy five percent of us dream in color now, but before we had color TVs, only about fifteen percent of us did. The record for the longest period without sleep is eleven days. Whales and dolphins literally fall half asleep. Each side of their brain takes turns when they are sleeping so that they continue to come up for air. The sensation of falling when you're almost asleep, and that jerking that you do is called hypnic jerking. Have you ever had that happen? I don't like that you cannot sneeze while you are sleeping. You are taller when you are asleep because you are lying down and the disks in your spine spread out, so you are taller in the morning than you are at night. Humans can sleep with their eyes open, and we are the only mammals that willingly delay sleep.
Speaker 1: You're listening to sleep tight science. Did you know that the average person sleeps for about one third of their life. That means if a person is thirty three years old, they have slept for eleven years. Wow. So why do we sleep? We sleep so that our brains and our bodies can develop and grow. Our brain needs sleep so we can remember what we learned, so we can pay attention and concentrate, and so we can solve problems and think of new ideas. Though no one is exactly sure what work the brain does when you're sleeping, some scientists think that the brain sorts through and stores information, replaces chemicals, and solves problems while you snooze. Our bodies need sleep so our muscles, bones, and skin can grow, so that our muscles, skin, and other parts can fix injuries, and so our body can stay healthy and fight sickness. When your body doesn't have enough hours to rest, you may feel tired or cranky, or you may be unable to think clearly. You might have a hard time following directions, or you might have an argument with a friend about something really silly. A school assignment that's normally easy peasy may feel impossible, and you may even feel clumsy playing your favorite sport or instrument. This is what makes sleep very important. Kids ages five to twelve need about eleven hours of sleep each night. And when you get enough sleep, you can pay attention in school better, you can be more creative and think of new ideas. You can fight sickness so you stay healthy. You're probably going to be in a good mood, going to get along with your friends and family, and you'll probably even be able to solve problems better. When you don't get enough sleep, you might forget what you have learned. You might have trouble making good choices. You might be grumpy and be in a bad mood. You might have trouble playing games and sports. You might be less patient with your brothers, sisters, and friends. And you might have trouble listening to parents and teachers. So what does all this talk about the different stages of sleep. As you're drifting off to sleep, it doesn't seem like much is happening. The room is getting fuzzy and your eyelids feel heavier. But what happens next. Your brain swings into action and it tells your body how to sleep, and as you slowly fall asleep, you begin to enter the five different stages of sleep Stage one. In this stage, which is light sleep, your body starts to feel a bit drowsy, but you can still be woken up easily during this stage. For example, if someone talks to you or you hear a sound outside, you'll probably wake up right away. After a little while, you enter stage two, which is a slightly deeper sleep. Your brain gives the signal to your muscles to relax. It also tells your heart to beat a little slower and your breathing to slow down. Even your body temperature drops a bit. Stage three. When you are in this stage, you are in an even deeper sleep. Your brain sends a message to your blood pressure to get lower. Your body is not as sensitive to temperature or the air around you, which means you won't notice if it's a little hot or cold in your room, and it is much harder to be woken up when you're in this stage. Some people may sleep walk or sleep talk at this point. Point. Stage number four is the deepest sleep stage yet. It is very hard to wake up from this stage of sleep, and if you do wake up, you're sure to be confused for at least a few minutes. Like stage three, some people may sleep walk or talk in their sleep. When going from stage four to a lighter stage of sleep, do you have trouble getting to sleep or staying asleep. The rest of the family is asleep and you're just laying there wide awake. What can you do? Sit up or get up, sit in a chair, get a book to read but not too exciting, or you might want to finish it. Listen to music for a while, or write a letter. You could count some people. Imagine a flock of sheep and start counting them. You could do some slow breathing, counting as you breathe in and counting as you breathe out. I bet you can think of lots of quiet things to do. You don't want to wake anybody else up. Some things that you shouldn't do are watching TV or playing on the computer or checking your phone. It can be hard to stop when you need to go to sleep. Lots of kids are not getting enough sleep because they won't turn their devices off. But when you start to feel tired, go back to bed, close your eyes, then sleep. So how do we establish a good bedtime routine for most kids? Sleeping comes pretty naturally, but here are some tips to help you catch all the disease you need. Try to go to bed at the same time every night. This helps your body get into a routine. Follow a bedtime routine that is common, such as taking a warm bath or my favorite reading. Limit foods and drinks that contain caffeine. These include some sodas and other drinks like iced tea. Don't have a TV in your room. Research shows that kids who have a TV in their room sleep less. Don't exercise just before going to bed. Exercising earlier in the day at least two to three hours before sleeping helps a person sleep better. And use your bed just for sleeping, not doing homework, not playing games or talking on the phone. That way, you'll teach your body to associate your bed with sleep. If you have a hard time falling asleep for more than one or two nights, or you have some worries that are keeping you for sleeping, tell your mom or dad. They can help you solve your sleep problems. In fact, just talking about it with them could you help you relax just enough that you'll be ready to sleep. Here are some fun facts about sleep. Sea otters hold hands when they sleep so they don't drift away from each other. About seventy five percent of us dream in color now, but before we had color TVs, only about fifteen percent of us did. The record for the longest period without sleep is eleven days. Whales and dolphins literally fall half asleep. Each side of their brain takes turns when they are sleeping so that they continue to come up for air. The sensation of falling when you're almost asleep, and that jerking that you do is called hypnic jerking. Have you ever had that happen? I don't like that you cannot sneeze while you are sleeping. You are taller when you are asleep because you are lying down and the disks in your spine spread out, so you are taller in the morning than you are at night. Humans can sleep with their eyes open, and we are the only mammals that willingly delay sleep.