Revealed: The exact amount of sleep the average Briton gets – so, do you snooze more or less than your peers?

Revealed: The exact amount of sleep the average Briton gets – so, do you snooze more or less than your peers? by shivali best for mailonline. published: | updated:. we’re all regularly told of the benefits of getting at least seven hours of sleep a night. but a new survey shows that most of us are getting significantly less than this. researchers from lingo by abbott surveyed 2,000 britons to find out exactly how much shut-eye people across the uk get. the results revealed that the average briton gets just six hours and 20 minutes of sleep a night. and it’s particularly bad news for people in sheffield, who were found to be the tiredest in the uk. sixty per-cent of people in the steel city said they’re constantly tired, compared to the national average of 48 per cent. sophie bertrand, resident nutritionist at lingo, said: ‘these results show how tired the nation is, with as many as half of us complaining that we are always exhausted. ‘this could be for several reasons…we may be overworked, stressed, consuming a diet that lacks nutrition or not moving our bodies enough.’. we’re all regularly told of the benefits of getting at least seven hours of sleep a night. but a new survey shows that most of us are getting significantly less than this (stock image). while sheffield came out as the tiredest city, this was closely followed by glasgow (58 per cent constantly tired), plymouth (57 per cent), brighton (56 per cent), and cardiff (55 per cent). in terms of bedtime, the average briton now heads to bed at 10pm. however over-69s stay up later than other cohorts, with an average bedtime of 10:20pm. in contrast, people aged 18-44 prefer an early night, ending the day at 9:40pm on average. the survey also revealed which professions struggle the most with fatigue. hairdressers topped the list, with 73 per cent admitting that they’re constantly tired. this is followed by lawyers (72 per cent), people who work in hr (71 per cent), charity workers (67 per cent), and people who work in logistics (63 per cent). according to the nhs, the amount of sleep you need will vary depending on your age, as well as several other factors. the survey also revealed which professions struggle the most with fatigue. hairdressers topped the list, with 73 per cent admitting that they’re constantly tired (stock image). ‘a healthy adult usually needs around 7 to 9 hours of sleep,’ it explains on its website. ‘however, age, health and personal circumstances affect how much sleep we need, plus some people naturally sleep more than others. ‘teenagers, children and babies need more sleep because they are still growing, but that varies, too, with a newborn sleeping anywhere between 8 to 16 hours.’. if you’re not getting enough sleep, it could be down to several reasons. ‘some people are naturally lighter sleepers or take longer to get to sleep while others might sleep badly because of anxiety, worry over stressful events or other life challenges,’ the nhs added. ‘there are lots of things that can influence how well we sleep, such as our current physical or mental health, our upbringing, things that happen to us, and even our temperament. ‘however, bad sleep habits or poor sleep hygiene, such as not relaxing or winding down before bed, often cause sleep problems.’. about circidian rhythms. our internal circadian rhythms, or circadian clock, is responsible for waking our bodies up in the morning and ensuring they get a good night’s rest. in a healthy person, cortisol levels peak at around 8am, which wakes us up (in theory), and drop to their lowest at 3am the next day, before rising back to its peak five hours later. ideally, this 8am peak will be triggered by exposure to sunlight, if not an alarm. when it does, the adrenal glands and brain will start pumping adrenaline. by mid-morning, the cortisol levels start dropping, while the adrenaline (for energy) and serotonin (a mood stabilizer) keep pumping. at midday, metabolism and core body temperature ramp up, getting us hungry and ready to eat. after noon, cortisol levels start their steady decline. metabolism slows down and tiredness sets in. gradually the serotonin turns into melatonin, which induces sleepiness. our blood sugar levels decrease, and at 3am, when we are in the middle of our sleep, cortisol levels hit a 24-hour low. share or comment on this article: revealed: the exact amount of sleep the average briton gets – so, do you snooze more or less than your peers? this article was originally published by a read the original article here.