An estimated 63 million Nigerians may be suffering varied sleep problems just as research study revealed that poor sleep may lead to heart failure and decreased work place performance in adults and learning deficiency in students. The revelations were the crux of a lecture by Njideka Okubadejo, medical doctor and associate professor and consultant neurologist, to mark World Sleep Day.
More revelations at the lecture were that sleep disorder is a global epidemic, while 25 percent of adults suffer insomnia. The World Sleep Day lecture, third in the series held on Friday in Lagos is a proprietary of leading mattress and beddings maker, Mouka Limited. It was organised by Mouka Limited as part of activities to mark this year’s World Sleep Day.
Okubadejo stated that the three pillars of good health as ‘good diet, good exercise and good sleep’ and described a good sleep as a “Sleep duration that is followed by a spontaneous awakening and leaves one feeling refreshed and alert for the day.” She stated further that studies have linked human wellness to quality sleep and added that “good sleep helps brain development, boosts the human immune system and improves ability to learn and perform variety of tasks.”
“Sleep is a natural process controlled by the human brain. That is why if you do not sleep enough, the brain takes it as indebtedness to it and when you see people fall asleep during the day fact is sleep is collecting debts owed it.
“However, good quality sleeps restores body functions. Sleep restores and rejuvenates the body; it also helps to conserve energy. The hormones responsible for growth secretes in the night during sleep. Good sleep repair and rejuvenates the body and boosts the human immune system. Many major restorative functions in the body like muscle growth, tissue repair, protein synthesis takes place during sleep. Growth hormone release occur mostly during sleep.”
The consultant Neurologist at the College of Medicine, University of Lagos, listed poor sleep hygiene, psychosocial and emotional stress, use of stimulants and drugs as some of the known causes of sleep disorders. She also added that insufficient sleep generally results in increased sleepiness during the day leading to poor performance and increased health risk.
Earlier in her welcome remark, Peju Adebajo, managing director of Mouka Limited, said Mouka Limited the company pioneered the celebration of the World Sleep Day in Nigeria because of the importance of sleep to human wellness. She added that ideally, human beings should sleep a third of their life.
“Mouka Limited, makers of quality mattress that add comfort to lives was the first Nigerian company to celebrate World Sleep Day when we started three years ago. We chose to do so because we know that those that suffer sleep deprivation cannot function well. Sleep is part of life; ideally, human beings should spend a third of their lives sleeping,” Adebajo said.
Speaking further, she noted that in line with the corporate philosophy of Mouka Limited which is adding value to lives, the company has introduced a first of its kind Mattress trade-in initiative which would allow owners of old mattresses trade them in for new ones. Describing the Mattress trade-in initiative as novel, she explained that the objective was to help Nigerians get good sleep while adding that a good mattress is essential for quality sleep.
World Sleep Day is an annual event, intended to celebrate sleep and a call to action on important issues related to sleep, including medicine, education and social aspects. The celebration assumed increased prominence partly because it is a universal epidemic. It is organised by the World Sleep Day Committee of the World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM) and aims to lessen the burden of sleep problems on society through better prevention and management of sleep disorders.
