DailyDirt: Sleeping In Your Genes

Getting enough sleep has different meaning for different people, even though most people need about 7-9 hours a night. The CDC only started looking at how much sleep Americans have been getting since 2009, but the trend seems to be less and less, unfortunately. An estimated 50-70 million Americans have chronic sleep or wakefulness disorders, so figuring out sleep and its genetic components could benefit a lot of people.

• How a person reacts to sleep deprivation has a genetic component, and researchers are zeroing in on the genes that might allow some people to function normally with far less sleep than the rest of us. Sleep deprivation correlates with all kinds of unhealthy problems, and if you can't get more hours in a day, it might be useful to know how much sleep is optimal before anyone tries crazy polyphasic sleep experiments. [url]
• Russian researchers proposed four types of people -- not just "morning people" or "night owls" but also people who are energetic in both the morning and at night and unlucky people who are just lethargic all day. These chronotypes are based on observing test subjects, not genetic studies -- but it probably won't be long before someone points out the genetic cause. [url]
• A study based on 23andMe's genetic database (and a survey asking DNA donors: "Are you a morning person?") suggest that "morning people" could be hardwired in their DNA to prefer waking up early. This data analysis could possibly lead to pharmaceuticals for sleep disorders or just a better understanding of our circadian rhythms. [url]

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