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 How do sleep patterns of hunter gatherers compare to ours?

10/18/2015

8 Comments

 
PictureSan people - en,wikipedia.org
 US researchers monitored 98 people from traditional societies in Africa and South America for 1,165 nights to find out their sleeping patterns. These people's lifestyles closely resemble ancient hunter gatherers and are rapidly disappearing.

The results showed they slept for an average of 6.5 hours per night.



​By comparison, the scientists said that most people in the US get about seven hours, according to a large sleep poll, published in the journal Current Biology.

Temperature played a greater role than light in shaping sleeping patterns. When it gets too cold, they wake up.

For the poll, researchers studied the Hadza of Tanzania, the San of Namibia and the Tsimane of Bolivia, fitting their volunteers with wristwatches that monitor sleep.

A professor said that all three groups had similar sleep duration and pretty much the same timing of sleep.
As well as discovering that the average sleep duration was six hours and 25 minutes, the researchers also found the participants very rarely took naps and did not wake up during the night. Insomnia was also extremely rare. Two of the groups did not even have a word for it.

While the hunter gatherers did not fall asleep until several hours after sunset, artificial light was keeping so called modern man awake for even longer due in part to artificial lights, to late night TV, and the ever-present glow of smart phones. Source: BBC. 

Our household consists of two people past their seventies. One sleeps well and the other suffers from insomnia. Our lifestyle is the same—no smart phones disturb us. I get tired at 10 pm, but will remain awake for another hour if a film holds my interest. My husband wakes and retires late—a never-ending cycle of stress seems to cause his insomnia.
​
Of course, we're all different. How do you sleep?

8 Comments
K.Lee Banks link
10/18/2015 09:46:24 am

I would say I usually don't get enough sleep, as a rule. When I attempt to go to bed early (like before 10pm), I typically stay awake for quite awhile, because I cant turn off my mind!

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Mahathi Ramya link
10/18/2015 10:50:29 am

I used to sleep late and get up late Francene. But, i realized that my health improved when i started sleeping early at 10.30pm at most. I agree that modern man get disturbed by smart phone. Sometimes, too much work and mental stress leads to insomnia.

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peppylady (Dora) link
10/18/2015 08:44:40 pm

I saw this on television not long ago and in my local weight lost support group we talk about how sleep effects your weight.
Well actual before clocks and shift work in factories are sleep habits was a lot different... http://slumberwise.com/science/your-ancestors-didnt-sleep-like-you/

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Amy Bovaird link
10/18/2015 10:21:11 pm

Fascinating topic, Francene.
I don't need as much sleep as my sister used to need. My mother, in her late 80s sleeps even less. But my sister always insisted I would feel much better if I got more rest. I'm going to try it because I decided I needed to fit more things in a day, so I will set m alarm for 6 am each day this week.
Amy

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Alana link
10/19/2015 03:20:13 am

Although I majored in cultural anthropology in college (back in the early 1970's) I don't remember any kind of discussion of sleep patterns. This is fascinating. I've never been a napper, nor was my son (even when he was young).

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Roy A. Ackerman, PhD, EA link
10/19/2015 05:08:50 am

I read these news articles, too. (No, I have not searched for the Current Biology prime source....yet.) But, we've known the effects of temperature on sleep. And, we do know that light- especially our computer/tablet/tv/game lights- keep our brain stimulated, keep us from a good night's sleep- and may be among the causes of insomnia.
But, it's good to see folks finally agreeing that 8 hours of sleep is not the norm. Because, I'm tired of defending my 3 to 4 hours of sleep a night.

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Ruthanne link
10/19/2015 08:17:20 am

I used to sleep horribly, but since I'm now taking a perfectly balanced supplement, I now sleep great.

At first I felt like I was missing something, sleeping for 8 hrs!

Reply
Parul Thakur link
10/20/2015 03:45:52 am

I sleep pretty well. Yes, smart phones disturb but I put then on sleep as well. :)

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    Francene Stanley
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