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Bailey Steed
April 18th 2016
UWRT 1103-012
Ms. Rothwell

Why am I getting enough sleep but still tired?

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Can you think of the last time you dozed off in class? Or the last time you dozed off
while behind the wheel and were suddenly awaken by the divots on the side of the road? Odds
are, events like these arent very hard for you to think back to. Each and every day events like
these are happening throughout the world in the lives of most people. Whether these events are
caused by a sleeping disorder, lack of sleep, or even stress, all of them root back to one main
thing, sleep. Without a good nights sleep, the most relaxed day can seem more physically
draining than the days before where you did twice the amount of work. According to The
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration dozing off or falling asleep while driving
caused nearly 72,000 accidents, 44,000 injuries, and 800 deaths in 2013 (Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention ). The chart to the left shows the correlation in amount of sleep/sleep
behaviors and percentage of people who admit to dozing off within the next 30 days. If this chart
isnt enough to scare you into a good sleeping habit then the rest of this paper will. Throughout
the rest of this paper I will look into a few
of the main questions that people have
about sleep and I will give in depth
solutions on how to not only enhance the
quality of your sleep, but how to get a
healthy night of sleep.

To answer the questions that a lot of people have on sleep and to clear up any misunderstandings,
I will answer the following questions:
1. What is typically seen as a good nights sleep?
2. What effects can poor sleep habits have on you?
3. What can I do to enhance the amount/quality of sleep I get each night?

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What is a typical good nights sleep?

The answer to this question varies among each individual for the most part, but with that
being said, there are a few truths to what is considered a good nights sleep. When asked what is
a good amount of sleep each night, most people have the same number come to mind, eight. If
amount of sleep was all that mattered, then this answer would be precise. But that is not the case.
A lot of individuals would wrongfully state that quality of sleep is only determined by the
amount of sleep one gets, this is far from the truth. Also for a lot of people, especially college
students, sleep is seen as a luxury when it should be seen as a priority. Many times people put
sleep on the backburner and come up with excuses as to why they have to stay up late and
restrict themselves from a good nights sleep. Once informed, I feel that they will soon realize
the hidden truths of sleep. Uninformed people are only making themselves more susceptible to
the risks that lack of sleep may bring.

What effects can poor sleep habits have on you?

If you are the type of person that puts sleep off or finds it unimportant, you are putting
yourself at risk of many more consequences than you realize. Lack of sleep does a lot more to a
person aside from just leaving them feeling exhausted. As I stated earlier, lack of sleep can lead
to drowsy driving, which can potentially lead to death. Though this example is an extreme, it is
very real along with many other potential risks that you are exposing yourself to when you fail to
make sleep a priority. The next, and main negative effect of lack of sleep is a decline in your
health. Not only can a lack of sleep cause your hormones to go crazy, but it can also cause you to
constantly feel hungry which can lead to obesity. According to a study conducted by Healthline,
people who on average only got six hours of sleep were 27% more likely to be overweight than

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those who slept 7-9 hours, and those who slept only five hours were 73% more likely to be
overweight (Colbert).
The next, and more serious health problems lack of sleep can lead to revolve around one
thing, early death. According to a study conducted on sleep by the American Academy of Sleep
Medicine, people who slept fewer than seven hours a night were at an increased risk of heart
disease, and type two diabetics who slept poorly reported higher levels of glucose and insulin
resistance (Sabanayagam). Another serious
health concern that can arise is an increased
risk of breast cancer. An astonishing study
conducted by The British Journal of Cancer
found that women who slept less than six hours
a night had a 62% higher chance of being diagnosed with breast cancer (Kakizaki). Aside from
these risks that I have previously stated, there are a ton of psychological disorders that can stem
from a lack of sleep. If you are like me, this information probably knocked you a step back and
made you realize the importance of sleep, which leads into the next question.

What can I do to enhance the amount/quality of sleep I get each night?

Not only does sleeping longer improve your sleep and the quality of it, but so do other
factors that you may think have no correlation. The first of these factors is what you eat. Believe
it or not, the types of food you eat throughout the day and when you eat them, can affect your
sleep. The best food tips are simple, stay away from caffeine, avoid big meals around bedtime,
and cut down on the liquids at night. Im not saying to avoiding eating or drinking at all at night,
Im just saying to be conscious of what you eat and drink. Foods to consider eating at night

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include turkey, grains, milk products, or fruits. Another thing that can improve your sleep is
exercising regularly. Not only can exercise habits enhance sleep, but they can also lessen the
effects of sleep disorders such as insomnia. The final way to enhance your sleep is to try reduce
your stress. Stress is far more detrimental to sleep than factors such as caffeine and sweets.
According to an article published by Medical News Today, stress keeps 68 percent of college
students up at night (Significant Sleep Deprivation and Stress Among College Students, USA).
If you feel you suffer from sleep deprivation or you are not making it a priority, I would
suggest you take the information I have just provided and
put it to use in your daily routines.

Works Cited
Colbert, Treacy. "The Science of Sleep: Why You Need 7-8 Hours a Night." Healthline. George
Krucik, 1 July 2013. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
"Drowsy Driving: Asleep at the Wheel." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 05 Nov. 2015. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
Feature, R. Morgan GriffinWebMD. "Sleep and Health: 9 Surprising Reasons to Get More
Sleep." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
Kakizaki, M., S. Kuriyama, T. Sone, K. Ohmori-Matsuda, A. Hozawa, N. Nakaya, S. Fukudo,
and I. Tsuji. "Sleep Duration and the Risk of Breast Cancer: The Ohsaki Cohort Study."

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British Journal of Cancer. Nature Publishing Group, n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
Sabanayagam, Charumathi. "SLEEP - Sleep Duration and Cardiovascular Disease: Results from
the National Health Interview Survey." SLEEP - Sleep Duration and Cardiovascular
Disease: Results from the National Health Interview Survey. American Academy of
Sleep Medicine, n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.
"Significant Sleep Deprivation And Stress Among College Students, USA." Medical News
Today. MediLexicon International, 10 Aug. 2009. Web. 13 Apr. 2016.