| Ten years ago, a former colleague of mine, a fine | | | | concentration levels: When you are overly tired, your |
| teacher and person, was tragically killed in a car | | | | attention span decreases. Most people are subject to |
| accident in British Columbia. He was on vacation with | | | | a decrease in attention every 90-120 minutes; |
| his daughter who miraculously survived the accident. | | | | however, sleepiness makes this decrease even |
| What happened was a classic case of sleep | | | | worse and it can cause accidents when you fall |
| deprivation: my friend was anxious to make his way | | | | asleep at the wheel.c) Disorder in information |
| to a chosen destination and despite his fatigue and | | | | processing: Sleepiness is very much like being under |
| the fact that he had been on the road for over 6 | | | | the influence of alcohol or drugs. When you are |
| hours, he made the decision to drive through the | | | | sleepy, your mental and psychomotor skills diminish. In |
| night. He never made it there. | | | | one study, a group of subjects were kept awake for |
| That there is a direct correlation between sleep | | | | 28 hours; another group was given alcoholic drinks |
| deprivation and traffic accidents cannot be disputed. | | | | every half hour. When both groups were tested for |
| In 1998, 24,318 deaths were cited from accidents | | | | hand-eye coordination, the ones who were sleep |
| related to sleep deprivation in the US. There were as | | | | deprived performed equally bad as the ones with 0.5 |
| well 2, 474,430 disabling injuries resulting from | | | | blood alcohol level. |
| accidents where decreased mental efficiency and | | | | What are the factors that have a direct effect on a |
| attentiveness due to sleep loss was the major | | | | driver's tiredness?a) The amount of time the driver |
| causative factor. In fact, a major review conducted | | | | has been on the road. When a driver has been on |
| in 1996 suggested that the oil spill of the Exxon | | | | the road for 8 or more hours, his driving performance |
| Valdez, the destruction of the space shuttle | | | | is impaired. The risk of accidents increases.b) The |
| Challenger, the nuclear accident at Chernobyl( costing | | | | amount of sleep the driver had the night before. Not |
| over 50,000 lives) and the near nuclear accidents at | | | | having any sleep for 16 hours has a serious impact on |
| the Three Mile Island and Peach Bottom reactors | | | | driving performance. Research shows that the |
| were all associated with sleep deprivation of the | | | | sleeping period of drivers who are involved in road |
| personnel involved. | | | | accidents are shorter than the ones of those who |
| Sleep deprivation is often caused by sleep disorders | | | | had sufficient sleep.c) Sleep disorders and Obesity. |
| which are unknown to the subjects themselves. | | | | Sleep disorders like sleep apnea or narcolepsy in truck |
| Sleep apnea, for example, is a common cause for | | | | drivers are a major risk factor. In the same Stanford |
| sleep deficit. A study at the Sleep Disorders and | | | | University Study mentioned above, even weight can |
| Research Center of Stanford University Medical | | | | seriously affect the frequency of traffic accidents. |
| School showed that truck drivers identified with sleep | | | | Obese drivers with a body mass more than 30 kg |
| disordered breathing had a two-fold higher accident | | | | also presented a two-fold higher accident rate than |
| rate than drivers without sleep-disordered breathing. | | | | non-obese drivers.d) Environmental factors. The lack |
| Sleep disordered breathing, commonly known as | | | | of resting and parking facilities for drivers is another |
| sleep apnea, affects 15 million people in the United | | | | factor that contributes to the accident rate. |
| States. This condition, characterized by suffocation | | | | What can we do to ensure that we get adequate |
| and oxygen deprivation which wake the subjects up | | | | sleep?a) Set up a bedtime ritual—the same time |
| several times in the course of the night, is responsible | | | | to bed, the same routines like reading in bed or |
| for daytime sleepiness and fatigue. Put these | | | | listening to relaxing music.b) See your doctor if you |
| subjects on the highway and we have a recipe for | | | | have snoring or breathing problems, daytime fatigue, |
| disastrous traffic accidents. | | | | morning headaches, night time choking episodes. You |
| Perhaps an examination of the influence sleep | | | | could have sleep apnea which can be treated with |
| deprivation has on our mental acuity and | | | | new devices and technology.c) If you are |
| performance level can shed light on how we can | | | | overweight, take the steps to bring down your |
| protect ourselves and others from the disastrous | | | | weight. Obesity is a common factor in |
| consequences of sleep fatigue. | | | | sleeplessness.d) Get into a routine of exercise during |
| What happens to you when you are sleep deprived? | | | | the day. Do not exercise after 7Pm as the activity |
| According to the Traffic Research Center, these are | | | | could be over stimulating and prevent you from |
| the influences of sleep deprivation on performance:a) | | | | sleeping. |
| Slower reaction time: sleeplessness slows down your | | | | A simple thing like sleep is nothing to be dismissed. |
| reflexes; reaction time slows down, preventing you | | | | More and more studies are revealing a direct link |
| from stopping in times of danger.b) Decrease in | | | | between our nighttime and daytime experiences. |