Assignment5
LDots01
National Sleep Foundation Recommends New Sleep Times
FOR IMMEDIATE& RELEASE
National Sleep Foundation
Email: [email protected]
WASHINGTON, DC, (February 2, 2015)--The National Sleep Foundation (NSF), along with a multi-
disciplinary expert panel, issued its new recommendations for appropriate sleep durations. The report
recommends wider appropriate sleep ranges for most age groups. The results are published in Sleep
Health: The Journal of the National Sleep Foundation. The National Sleep Foundation convened experts
from sleep, anatomy and physiology, as well as pediatrics, neurology, gerontology and gynecology to
reach a consensus from the broadest range of scientific disciplines. The panel revised the recommended
sleep ranges for all six children and teen age groups. A summary of the new recommendations includes:
Newborns (0-3 months): Sleep range narrowed to 14-17 hours each day (previously it was 12-
18)
Infants (4-11 months): Sleep range widened two hours to 12-15 hours (previously it was 14-15)
Toddlers (1-2 years): Sleep range widened by one hour to 11-14 hours (previously it was 12-14)
Preschoolers (3-5): Sleep range widened by one hour to 10-13 hours (previously it was 11-13)
School age children (6-13): Sleep range widened by one hour to 9-11 hours (previously it was 10-
11)
Teenagers (14-17): Sleep range widened by one hour to 8-10 hours (previously it was 8.5-9.5)
Younger adults (18-25): Sleep range is 7-9 hours (new age category)
Adults (26-64): Sleep range did not change and remains 7-9 hours
Older adults (65+): Sleep range is 7-8 hours (new age category)
“This is the first time that any professional organization has developed age-specific recommended sleep
durations based on a rigorous, systematic review of the world scientific literature relating sleep duration
to health, performance and safety,” said Charles A. Czeisler, PhD, MD, chairman of the board of the
National Sleep Foundation, chief of sleep and circadian disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and
Baldino Professor of Sleep Medicine at the Harvard Medical School. “The National Sleep Foundation is
providing these scientifically grounded guidelines on the amount of sleep we need each night to
improve the sleep health of the millions of individuals and parents who rely on us for this information.”
A new range, “may be appropriate,” has been added to acknowledge the individual variability in
appropriate sleep durations. The recommendations now define times as either (a) recommended; (b)
may be appropriate for some individuals; or (c) not recommended.
“The National Sleep Foundation Sleep Duration Recommendations will help individuals make sleep
schedules that are within a healthy range. They also serve as a useful starting point for individuals to
discuss their sleep with their health care providers,” said David Cloud, CEO of the National Sleep
Foundation.
National Sleep Foundation’s Sleep Duration Recommendations:
Age Recommended May be appropriate Not recommended
Newborns
0-3 months
14 to 17 hours 11 to 13 hours
18 to 19 hours
Less than 11 hours
More than 19 hours
Infants
4-11 months
12 to 15 hours 10 to 11 hours
16 to 18 hours
Less than 10 hours
More than 18 hours
Toddlers
1-2 years
11 to 14 hours 9 to 10 hours
15 to 16 hours
Less than 9 hours
More than 16 hours
Preschoolers
3-5 years
10 to 13 hours 8 to 9 hours
14 hours
Less than 8 hours
More than 14 hours
School-aged Children
6-13 years
9 to 11 hours 7 to 8 hours
12 hours
Less than 7 hours
More than 12 hours
Teenagers
14-17 years
8 to 10 hours 7 hours
11 hours
Less than 7 hours
More than 11 hours
Young Adults
18-25 years
7 to 9 hours 6 hours
10 to 11 hours
Less than 6 hours
More than 11 hours
Adults
26-64 years
7 to 9 hours 6 hours
10 hours
Less than 6 hours
More than 10 hours
Older Adults
≥ 65 years
7 to 8 hours 5 to 6 hours
9 hours
Less than 5 hours
More than 9 hours
The recommendations are the result of multiple rounds of consensus voting after a comprehensive
review of published scientific studies on sleep and health. The expert panel included six sleep experts
and experts from the following stakeholder organizations:
- American Association of Anatomists
- American Academy of Pediatrics
- American College of Chest Physicians
- American Geriatrics Society
- American Neurological Association
- American Physiological Society
- American Psychiatric Association
- American Thoracic Society
- Gerontological Society of America
- Human Anatomy and Physiology Society
- Society for Research in Human Development
- American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
“The NSF has committed to regularly reviewing and providing scientifically rigorous recommendations,”
says Max Hirshkowitz, PhD, Chair of the National Sleep Foundation Scientific Advisory Council. “The
public can be confident that these recommendations represent the best guidance for sleep duration and
health."
To view the full results and methodology of the report, please visit sleephealthjournal.org.
Expert interviews and resources are available to the media. Please contact NSF for more information or
to schedule an interview via [email protected].
About the National Sleep Foundation
The National Sleep Foundation is dedicated to improving health and well-being through sleep education
and advocacy. Founded in 1990 by the leaders in sleep medicine, NSF is the trusted resource for sleep
science, healthy sleep habits, and sleep disorders to medical professionals, patients and the public. For
more information visit sleepfoundation.org or sleep.org.