Sleeping Enough to Be Truly Awake

"Human beings are the only species that deprives themselves of sleep. No other species that we see will do this... And what that means is that evolution has never faced the challenge of insufficient sleep since the dawn of time. As a consequence, Mother Nature has never had to solve this problem of insufficient sleep -- so there is no safety net [to bank on when it comes to sleep loss.]" In this Awakin call, guest Matt Walker, a professor of Neuroscience at UC Berkeley and director of the Sleep and Neuroimaging Laboratory, describes the critical importance of good sleep for learning, memory, creativity, emotional regulation, cardiovascular health, and healthy aging. Calling the global sleep loss epidemic "the greatest public health challenge we now face in the 21st century," Matt examines the impact of sleep loss on the human brain function. In this lively discussion, Matt also answers several pertinent questions from participants on issues ranging from the use of electronic devices during bed time to working late-night shifts to napping during the day to long-term use of sleeping pills -- and helps demystify this fundamental biological drive.

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