Bradford public urged to increase sleep as report says we don’t get enough (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Bradford public urged to increase sleep as report says we don’t get enough

7:00am Saturday 2nd March 2013 in News By Jessica Nightingale, T&A Reporter

Ian Higgins, 36, a graphic designer of Odsal Top, who said: "I don’t sleep well at all. I don’t sleep right through the night. I think it is down to stress issues. I usually get between four and six hours sleep per night roughly."

People in Bradford have been urged to sleep more by a health expert.

The sleeping habits of the district mirror the national picture in that fewer people are getting the recommended amount of shut-eye.

Dr David Dawson, who runs sleep clinics in Bradford, has praised the publication of the first British Bedtime Report, by The Sleep Council.

He hopes it will make people assess their own routine which could then improve their sleeping patterns.

The report suggests in Yorkshire the average person goes to bed at about 11.15pm and gets six hours and 33 minutes of sleep per night.

Dr Dawson a consultant anaesthetist at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The amount of sleep we require varies for each person but disturbed sleep and lack of it is a huge problem.

“Weight gain is a big contributing factor to things like snoring as it narrows the breathing passage and causes you to snore.

“Sleep is so important as it allows our bodies to rest, your body temperature drops by half a degree, your blood pressure and pulse slows down.

“In 1993 it was thought that nationally four per cent of men and two per cent of women had sleep apnoea, where abnormal pauses in breathing occur, which has risen to about nine per cent for men and five per cent for women.”

Dr Dawson recommends to make sure the temperature of your bedroom is cool and to avoid going to bed with the TV on as it may disturb your sleep later.

Also regular exercise is said to help get you to sleep.

The report highlights stress and worry as a couple of the issues affecting people’s sleep.

Nationally, the report suggests that one third of the population now get five to six hours sleep a night compared to 27 per cent in 2010, and 70 per cent sleep for fewer than seven hours.

The survey found 18 per cent of people living in Yorkshire used alcohol as a remedy to help them get to sleep.

Dr Dawson said: “Alcohol isn’t the best answer and will make you snore more. It is a muscle relaxant and when you sleep your muscles relax anyway. So the throat muscles after alcohol relax even more which alters your breathing pattern.”

Jessica Alexander, of The Sleep Council, said: “We want to see sleep moved up the political agenda and a public information campaign launched to encourage people to understand the importance of good sleep and how to achieve it.”

Sleep clinics are held at St Luke’s Hospital in Bradford and at The Yorkshire Clinic in Bingley.