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CNN Live Today
47 Million Sleep Deprived
Aired April 02, 2002 - 11:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Americans are a bunch of sleepyheads, a new poll today finding that 47 million of us are not getting the bare minimum amount of sleep that we need to be on our toes.
More now from CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Everybody wants it and nobody can seem to get enough. And now a new poll paints a disturbing picture of sleeplessness in America.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well I have three kids under three currently, so it's two hours at a time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I usually get between seven and eight and I usually sleep pretty good.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I normally sleep three to four hours a night. I need more, a lot more.
DR. RUSSELL ROSENBERG, NATIONAL SLEEP FOUNDATION: Apparently Americans are still chronically sleep deprived almost to epidemic proportions. And we're not getting more and more sleep even though the information is getting out there.
GUPTA: But what about the cumulative effect of too little sleep?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can feel myself get a little frazzled and a little short on things. And your memory goes a little bit, you know? You're not as quick on things.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm very irritable. I'm very grouchy. I'm very short tempered, and it's just because I'm tired and I just want to rest. And, I mean, that's all I can really thing about, is getting back to sleep.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Cranky, agitated, and you're just like, "Hey, don't bother me."
ROSENBERG: The poll shows that people are more irritable and more frustrated in traffic per se. And, yes, there may be an increase in road rage.
GUPTA: And if road rage isn't bad enough, sleepy drivers can be just as dangerous.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: There are probably times I shouldn't have driven when I was tired.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've nodded a couple of times, yeah. You've got to be careful about that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did you ever nod off?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, and that's what made me after that -- nodding off -- rolling off to the side. I didn't get in a wreck or anything, but I just went and decided after that it's best to have enough sleep.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GUPTA: I'm here with a couple of early morning anchors who probably don't always get enough sleep themselves. But here are some tips if you want to try to get enough sleep. Try not to eat, drink, or exercise two to three hours before bedtime, and try to have a consistent time when you can go to bed and when you can wake up.
And try not to stay out too late at Final Four basketball games.
KAGAN: Hint, hint.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Guilty.
KAGAN: As charged.
There's one thing we can't control at most places in America: daylight-saving time coming. It's this weekend?
GUPTA: It's this weekend. Daylight-saving time, also called summer time. Some interesting facts about that. Actually, it was first thought of by Benjamin Franklin, back in 1748. But in this country, 1916 is when it was started. All but 2 1/2 states, Hawaii, Arizona, and half of Indiana, will actually spring their clocks ahead.
The big defense of this is that it saves the government 1 percent per day in energy costs to go to daylight-saving time.
KAGAN: It does. I know that for having lived 5 1/2 years in Arizona.
You get enough sleep last night?
GUPTA: I did all right.
KAGAN: All right. Just checking on you too.
GUPTA: Had a little coffee this morning.
KAGAN: That will help.
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