Forget 8 hours - new research reveals how much sleep adults really need

Key Points:

• A new review from Brain Medicine challenges the idea that all adults need eight hours of sleep per night, suggesting that healthy sleep patterns vary among individuals and are not evolutionarily fixed.
• Studies of pre-industrial and hunter-gatherer societies indicate natural sleep durations ranged from about 5.7 to 7.1 hours per night, often without long daytime naps, contrasting with modern sleep habits influenced by artificial light.
• Artificial light from lamps, computers, and smartphones delays the body’s natural sleep-wake cycle, contributing to later sleep times and irregular patterns compared to ancestral norms.
• Research suggests optimal sleep duration varies by individual factors such as health and biological sex, with some studies indicating a "sweet spot" between 6.4 and 7.8 hours for best health outcomes.
• The National Sleep Foundation recommends 7 to 9 hours for most adults aged 26 to 64, but acknowledges individual needs can range from 6 to 10 hours, emphasizing that the eight-hour guideline is not a one-size-fits-all rule.