Do You Really Need 8 Hours of Sleep Every Night? | Body Stuff with Dr. Jen Gunter | TED

You don’t need exactly 8 hours of sleep every night, your body can work with a little more or a little less.

Imagine your brain is like a toy that needs to charge. If you play with it all day, it gets tired and needs time to rest. Some people need more time to recharge, like a big battery that takes longer to fill up. Others are like small batteries, they can rest quickly and be ready for more playing in the morning.

• Kids usually need about 10, 12 hours of sleep every night.
• Teenagers might need around 9 hours.
• Adults often do well with 7, 9 hours, but it’s not always exactly 8!

Sometimes your brain needs to rest more if you’ve been running around a lot or thinking really hard. Other times, it can get by with less.

Think of sleep like eating, just like you don’t need the exact same amount of food every day, your body doesn’t need the exact same amount of sleep every night either. You don’t need exactly 8 hours of sleep every night, your body can work with a little more or a little less.

Imagine your brain is like a toy that needs to charge. If you play with it all day, it gets tired and needs time to rest. Some people need more time to recharge, like a big battery that takes longer to fill up. Others are like small batteries, they can rest quickly and be ready for more playing in the morning.