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Sleep (lat. somnus) is a natural physiological state opposite to the state of wakefulness, characterized by a reduced reaction to the outside world.
According to the WHO, an adult needs six to eight hours of sleep per night. The dangers of lack of sleep have been discussed many times. It significantly affects the quality of life, mood, performance, well-being, accelerates the aging process.
Also, chronic lack of sleep negatively affects the brain. A day without sleep leads to the appearance of chemical processes in the brain, leading to mental disorders. Two days later, the hormonal background changes and neural connections are disrupted. And after three or more days without sleep, brain cells begin to break down, and the load on internal organs, especially the heart, also increases.
When is World Sleep Day 2023?
World Sleep Day is celebrated annually on the Friday before the spring equinox. In 2023, it will have to March 17.
history of the holiday
The holiday was initiated by the World Sleep Day Committee of the World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM). Its goal was to attract public attention to the problem of sleep, the prevention and treatment of sleep disorders and the promotion of healthy sleep.
Each year is held under its own motto. The first World Sleep Day was held in 2008 under the slogan “Sleep tight, live well”.
Holiday traditions
A variety of events, conferences, round tables, symposia dedicated to sleep, its problems, the impact of sleep disorders on diseases and disorders are timed to coincide with World Sleep Day. Social advertising is activated in the media.
dormouse day
In Finland every year July 27 Dormouse Day (fin. Unikeonpäivä) is celebrated. The history of the holiday goes back to the legend of the seven Christians – the seven youths of Ephesus, who slept for almost 200 years in a cave, fleeing the wrath of the Roman emperor.
The day of their memory began to be celebrated since 1652. And since the 1950s, a new tradition has appeared: residents chose an “honorary dormouse” and threw it into the water. In Naantali, this position is given to a citizen who has made a significant contribution to the life of the city. So, at least once during his election term, the mayor was thrown into the water.
Interesting facts about sleep
- Somnology is a science that deals with the study, diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders.
- While sleeping, August Kekule discovered the formula for benzene.
- According to legend, D. I. Mendeleev discovered the periodic table of chemical elements in a dream.
- Paul McCartney, a member of The Beatles, claims he first heard the tune that later became the hit “Yesterday” in a dream.
- Dreams take up only 15-20% of the total time spent in sleep.
- About an hour and a half after falling asleep, a person begins to dream.
- Overweight problems and lack of sleep are linked: people who sleep less than 8 hours a night are more likely to overeat and become obese.
- After 16 hours without sleep, people’s performance drops significantly.
- Man is the only mammal capable of consciously depriving himself of sleep.
- Some animals, such as cows, horses, and elephants, can sleep standing up, while flamingos sleep standing up on one leg. Hippos can sleep underwater – they come up to the surface every 3-5 minutes to breathe air, but do not wake up.
sleep gods
In the myths of different nations, we can meet the gods – the patrons of sleep.
In ancient Greece, the main deity of sleep and dreams was Hypnos. He was represented as a beautiful young man with wings, flying over the world with a horn in his hands, from which a sleeping pill is poured onto the ground. Hypnos had three sons, each of whom commands a different aspect of dreams. Morpheus is the god of good (prophetic or false) dreams, Phobetor is the god of nightmares, Phantasus is the ruler of inanimate objects in dreams and creates paradoxical situations.