Despite all past allegations, a new study conducted by The Bedding Company has shown that students of the United Kingdom are a little more active than we first thought.
Although most students are found at night, crawling through the shadows from one bar to the next, the study has found that contrary to popular opinion, you can find students through the day too.
According to 100 students which took part in the survey, up to 85% of them were wide awake before 9am; before the start of the days lectures.
In fact and perhaps more shockingly, 71% of students claimed to be in bed before midnight if they were not on a night out. But how much do they sleep?
Besides hosting a reputation for daytime sleeping, another attribution to the lazy myth is the allusion that through the finale of their educational career, most students spend a lot if not most of their time asleep.
Although this sloth-like behaviour is the dream of most full-time working adults, it seems that this too is something that has been dispelled by the survey.
In fact, 51% of students were found to sleep only a mere 5 to 7 hours a day with 37% sleeping 7 to 10 hours a night and only 1% admitting to sleeping anything more than 10 hours a night/ morning/ into the afternoon.
A spokesman for The Bedding Company said:
“These results seem to show the reputation students often have for spending more time asleep than awake is completely unwarranted. But I would also suggest the eagerness many show in the first term might not continue throughout the academic year. I’d be interested to see what the responses are like in six months’ time!”
So, what affect can sleeping have on studying and general health?
Disconcertingly, sleep plays a major role on not just the quality of our daily lives but also how long we live.
According to Time Magazine, those who sleep between 6.5 and 7.5 hours a night live the longest. Unfortunately however, for those who sleep 8 hours or more or less than 6.5 hours, don’t tend to live as long.
As far as grades go the consequences of a poor sleeping pattern are pretty obvious. A study conducted by an American University found that even the brightest students would suffer lower marks if their sleeping patterns were found to be beyond the norm.
How can students achieve high quality sleep?
· Stay clear of alcohol before bedtime. Although some presume that alcohol actually nurtures sleep, even one unit of alcohol can disrupt sleeping patterns and cause a poor quality sleep.
· Make sure your bed is comfortable, items such as memory foam pillows and mattresses though slightly more expensive, can be a way to ensure restful sleep during the exam season.
· To help regulate sleep, only go out once or twice a week during term time and if you can, try and do so during the weekend to help manage your sleep accordingly.