New research has found that poor sleep is costing the Australian economy more than $66 billion dollars in health bills, lost productivity and wellbeing annually.
Last year Deloitte Access Economics released a health survey that discovered 39.8 per cent of Australians don’t get enough sleep, and about 39 per cent of Australians experience some form of inadequate sleep, including sleeping disorders. The survey also found 7.4 million Australian adults don’t regularly get the sleep they need, and that 394 Australians die each year as a result of falling asleep at the wheel of a car, or in an industrial accident that was caused by lack of sleep.
The report hypothesizes that sleep deprivation is costing the health system $1.8 billion or $246 per person and productivity losses of $17.9 billion or $2418 per person. The costs to overall wellbeing were estimated at $40.1 billion and costs overall at $66.3 billion in 2016-17
Six signs you’re not getting enough sleep
Negative moods and attitudes
Sleep and emotional health are closely connected. Even short-term, partial sleep loss can have a negative effect on your mood, outlook, and the quality of your relationships with your family and friends.
Poor productivity and performance
Chronic sleep deprivation can negatively affect the ability to reason, focus, and even find the right words to describe simple things, creating a cumulative, monumental effect in the workplace.
Weight gain
People who sleep fewer than six hours a night are more likely to be overweight.
Looking under the weather
Red, puffy eyes, dark under-eye circles, and turned-down corners of the mouth are all common features of a face not getting enough sleep.
Poor judgement
Being able to accurately read social situations and make good decisions depend on the brain’s capacity to process emotions, but when people are sleep deprived, the region of the brain involved with emotional processing tends to check out.
Feeling tired during the day
This one is a pretty obvious sign, but feeling exhausted during the daytime hours is a big red flag that you aren’t clocking enough sleep at night.
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Tips for a better night’s sleep
Sleeping in may help you live longer
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