Be smart, sleep in

September 17, 1997

By Jane Young

Here’s another good excuse to stay in bed Monday morning.

Research from the University of British Columbia shows up to 15 or 20 IQ points can be lost after a poor night’s rest. The average IQ is 100 points, and to drop below 80 would result in below average performance, although the decrease is only temporary.

The lower IQ affects learning. If sleep is regained, one’s IQ will be back to normal.

For students — working part-time and staying up late — lack of sleep is common.

“Unfortunately this happens at the worst time — usually during exams,” said Susan Vlasic or the National Sleep Clinic.

“Students are up all night cramming for exams, and do poorly because of lock of sleep. It would be better to stop studying and get a couple more hours of sleep,” she said.

An average of eight hours of sleep is required to avoid losing any brain power. But sleeping up to 12 hours is normal for teenagers and students.

Vlasic suggested students try to stay in a routine of waking and sleeping at the same time each night as well as getting regular exercise.