According to a new study, by the end of this century (2099), people will lose between 50 and 58 hours of sleep per year due to warmer temperatures. The loss of sleep – about 10 minutes per night – is caused by an increase in nighttime temperatures due to climate change.
The study was published in the journal One Earth. It is based on data collected by wristbands and smartwatches that measured the sleep duration of more than 47,000 people in 68 countries between September 2015 and October 2017.
“We found that nights were randomly warm, leading to reduced human sleep duration in people around the world,” study co-author Kelton Minor told HealthDay News.
With the mercury hovering around 50 degrees Celsius last week, people in many parts of India are facing extreme temperatures. Due to the heat of summer, not only the day, but also the night became hot.
The researchers who conducted the study said that if the night temperature rises above the minimum level due to climate change, the chances of sleeping less than seven hours increase by 3.5 percent.
Alex Agostini, the senior lecturer in the Department of Justice and Social Studies at the University of South Australia in Adelaide, told CNN, “A sleep deprivation of 3.5 percent may initially appear as a small number, but it adds up.” He did not participate in the study.
Heat negatively affects sleep because a person’s body temperature must drop to fall asleep. The human body heats up when we fall asleep. However, as temperatures rise, this will become more difficult, according to the study.
Sleep deprivation has many potential health effects, including heart disease and health problems. According to the Washington-based National Sleep Foundation, adults should get seven to nine hours of sleep.