How Much Sleep Do Adults Need? Let’s Find Out!

One of the best things you can do to stay healthy is getting enough sleep. While it may seem surprising, people spend up to one-third of their lives asleep. That is, healthy people spend up to 33 percent of their lives snoozing.

Although that’s the case, determining the amount of sleep a person needs isn’t as simple as dividing the number of hours in a day by three. That’s because your sleep needs will change as you age. The amount of sleep you need on a daily basis will also vary in accordance with other factors, such as your lifestyle, stress levels, and work schedule.

To determine the amount of sleep you actually need, you must look at the “big picture.” If you’re trying to figure out how much sleep you need, the National Sleep Foundation suggests you ask yourself the following questions and make adjustments to your sleep schedule accordingly:

• Are you productive, happy and healthy with just seven hours of sleep per night or do you need nine hours of sleep for you to reach peak production levels?
• Are you battling health problems like being overweight or are you at risk for contracting a disease?
• Are you currently experiencing any issues with sleeping?
• Do you need to consume caffeine or another form of stimulant to get through the day?
• Do you experience sleepiness when you’re driving?

Sleep Recommendations from the National Sleep Foundation

As the “voice of sleep health,” the National Sleep Foundation conducted a years-long study that brought together experts from a number of leading organizations, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Neurological Association. The purpose of the study was to update the foundation’s sleep duration recommendations for various age brackets.

Although no amount of research can identify the exact amount of sleep a given individual needs, the study yielded sleep duration recommendations that are widely viewed as ideal for different age groups. Here are the National Sleep Foundation’s current sleep duration recommendations for people in different age brackets:

• Newborns, Zero to Three Months Old: The previous recommendation for this age group was 12 – 18 hours of sleep per day. The current recommendation is 14 – 17 hours of sleep daily.
• Infants, 4 – 11 Months Old: It’s recommended that infants get 12 – 15 hours of sleep each day.
• Toddlers, One to Two Years Old: While the prior recommendation was for toddlers to get 12 – 14 hours of sleep per day, the new recommendation is 11 – 14 hours.
• Preschoolers, Three to Five Years Old: It’s now recommended that children in this age bracket get 10 – 13 hours of sleep daily.
• School-Age Kids, 6 – 13 Years Old: The National Sleep Foundation recommends that school-age children get nine to 11 hours of sleep every day.
• Teenagers, 14 – 17 Years Old: The recommendation for teenagers is that they get eight to 10 hours of sleep daily.
• Younger Adults, 18 – 25 Years Old: This is a new age category for the National Sleep Foundation so previous sleep duration recommendations aren’t available for young adults. It’s now recommended that younger adults get seven to nine hours of sleep each day.
• Adults, 26 – 64 Years Old: The National Sleep Foundation recommends seven to nine hours of sleep for adults, which is the same as the foundation’s previous recommendation.
• Older Adults, 65 Years Old and Older: This is another new age category. The National Sleep Foundation advises older adults to get seven to eight hours of sleep every day.

Improve Your Sleep: Shop with Ben’s

If you’re not getting enough sleep, the National Sleep Foundation suggests you do things like exercise daily and stick to a sleep schedule. The foundation also recommends sleeping on a comfortable mattress and pillows, which you can find at Ben’s. Take advantage of our online comfort test and start getting the amount of sleep that’s right for you!