State of Readiness
What Constitutes Healthy Sleep?
- The amount of sleep you get is extremely important.
- The type of sleep you get also determines how well-rested you’ll be when you awake.
- Different people require different amounts of sleep.
- The vast majority of us need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night.
Two Primary Sleep Stages
- Non-rapid eye movement (NREM) accounts for longer periods of sleep during which our brain activity and bodily functions slow down.
- Rapid-eye movement (REM) happens in brief spurts of increased activity in the brain and body. REM is considered the dreaming stage of sleep.
- The sleep cycle usually begins with a period of about 80 minutes of NREM sleep followed by about 10 minutes of REM sleep.
- This 90-minute cycle is repeated four to six times each night.
Recommended Hours of Sleep Based on Age
- Infants 4 months to 12 months
- 12 to 16 hours per 24 hours, including naps
- 1 to 2 years
- 11 to 14 hours per 24 hours, including naps
- 3 to 5 years
- 10 to 13 hours per 24 hours, including naps
- 6 to 12 years
- 9 to 12 hours per 24 hours
- 13 to 18 years
- 8 to 10 hours per 24 hours
- Adults
- 7 or more hours a night