Is it possible to not require sleep

This change in the genes allows those with the mutation to think and function normally with less sleep than others. This alteration was also found in a mother and daughter who routinely slept an average of 6. When this same gene mutation was engineered into both mice and fruit flies, both species naturally slept less than their counterparts without the gene change. Scientists believe multiple genes are involved. To make an accurate diagnosis, your doctor will likely want to discuss your sleep habits.

Your doctor may also give you a questionnaire called the Morningness-Eveningness Questionnaire. This assessment tool contains 19 questions that help determine when you typically perform your day-to-day activities. These questionnaires can help your doctor evaluate your condition. This is different from those individuals who purposefully deny themselves sleep. If your doctor suspects you have an unhealthy sleep pattern, they may perform certain laboratory tests, including any or all of the following:.

Your doctor will observe you while you sleep, record data about your sleep patterns, and check for signs of a sleep disorder. To help make a diagnosis, your doctor will measure your brain waves, oxygen levels, and heart and breathing rates. An actigraph is a portable device that you can wear on your wrist or ankle. It measures the time of day and level of your activities. This can help determine aspects of sleep like total sleep time and periods of wakefulness. This test typically lasts one week.

Treatment for sleep problems often focuses on ways to help you regulate your sleeping and waking schedule. Sleep hygiene is a combination of tools used to restore restful sleep.

Starting these habits can be a good way to maintain healthy sleep. After doing this and waking up at the same time each morning, people were able to successfully function—and get high-quality sleep—on just six to 6. If you feel sleepy during the day, Horne said, then six hours is probably not enough for you. Instead, he says, focus on getting quality sleep rather than worrying about the quantity.

Making better use of your waking hours is another way to thrive on less sleep. This will raise your body temperature and then cool it down by bed time, helping you fall asleep more quickly and sleep more deeply through the night.

These are good places to start if you want to make the most of the sleep you get. Write to Abigail Abrams at abigail. By Abigail Abrams. It is possible, some research has found. Even so, experts say sleep plays a fundamental role in how people structure their lives, and taking it away would have a large sociological impact. Here are some ways human lives might be different if there were a cure for sleep.

Many people think they would be more productive if only they had more time. So in a world without sleep — in which people had 8 more hours in a day — it's tempting to suggest they'd get more done, and society would solve more problems. But experts say most people would not make the best use of this extra time. The human brain requires a certain amount of downtime to function optimally, and too much work or stress impairs thinking, Moloney said.

That's why people may come up with their best ideas in the shower, or in the middle of a seemingly mindless pastime. Linda Sapadin, a psychologist in private practice in New York, agreed. When people have extra time, they tend to fill it with relaxation, or just pass the time away, Sapadin said.

People who are compulsive workers might do more at first, but "eventually [the work] would take its toll, because we need to refresh ourselves," she said. Rather than being more productive , people might just be busier. NIH Research Matters. September 17, Gene identified in people who need little sleep. At a Glance Scientists identified a gene that causes people to naturally sleep less than six and a half hours each night without any apparent ill effects.

The findings reveal a mechanism affecting quality sleep and suggest an avenue to investigate for new sleep treatments. Some people need less sleep than others, and researchers are starting to understand why.

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