Sleep...What is the Magic Number?

Sleep.  My current self-help read tells me I need seven hours each night.  My body each morning tells me something different as I reach for my coffee cup.  How much sleep do we really need?  Is there a magic number that will have me springing from my bed? 

There is no "magic number" for individual sleep, but the general "rule-of-thumb" needs are courtesy of the Sleep Foundation:  Have a question about sleep?  Check out The Sleep Foundation for lots of great information.

I love to sleep in and play catch up on with my sleep, but it seems that might not be such a good idea anymore.  So having too much sleep can be a bad thing too. Who knew?

"... A key question is how much is too much or too little. Researchers Shawn Youngstedt and Daniel Kripke reviewed two surveys of more than 1 million adults conducted by the American Cancer Society and found that the group of people who slept seven hours had less mortality after six years than those sleeping both more and less. The group of people who slept shorter amounts and those who slept longer than eight hours had an average mortality risk that was greater, but the risk was higher for longer sleepers. Youngstedt and Kripke argue that for those who would normally sleep longer than eight hours, restricting their sleep may actually be healthier for them, just as eating less than one’s appetite may be healthier in a more sedentary society."

I am aiming for seven to nine hours of sleep each night.  I will keep track and find my own "magic number" that gives me the best health and mood.  Once that number is found the secret is to schedule sleep and make it a priority.  Sleep is one of those activities I tend to cut when there is a time crunch.  Not getting enough sleep leads to all sorts of issues.  Adding sleep to my "to-do" list is a positive step for 2010.