Wanted: More sleep

The culprits? A Harris-Decima poll* identified a number of 'sleep stealers' including stress, uncomfortable room or bed temperature, insomnia and being awakened by a partner.

"Extended periods of sleep disruption or poor sleep quality can often lead to impaired daytime functioning and depressed mood," said Dr. Eva Libman, Associate Director of the Behavioural Psychotherapy and Research Unit at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal.

How much sleep do you need?

How much sleep you need depends largely on your age. Experts say that infants generally require about 16 hours a day, while teenagers need, on average, about 9 hours. For most adults, 7 to 8 hours a night is thought to be best, although some people may need as few as 5 hours or as many as 10 hours of sleep each day.

Older people tend to sleep more lightly and for fewer hours, although they generally need as much sleep as they needed in early adulthood.

In fact, experts say that about half of people over 65 have frequent sleeping problems, such as insomnia. Deep sleep stages for many older people can become short or stop altogether. This could be a normal part of aging, or it could result from medical problems and/or medications.

Older adults may produce and secrete less melatonin, the hormone that promotes sleep, according to the National Institute on Ageing. They may also be more sensitive to -- and may awaken because of -- environmental factors such as noise.

Invest in your sleep portfolio

If you get too little sleep, you create a sleep debt, which is something like overdrawing your bank account. And because our bodies don't naturally adapt to getting less sleep, the debt eventually needs to be repaid.