If sleeping were an event in the Olympics…we’d all be losers

Tonight, the world will watch as the 2008 summer Olympics get underway in Beijing. The Olympics are a time of world unity, competitiveness and…sleep deprivation? Between the viewers who are staying up at all hours of the night to catch their favorite sports live on TV to the athletes who have sacrificed everything (including good sleeping habits - a quick review of the Olympics official Web site,www.nbcolympics.com, will produce various references to sleep such as “she often naps on the mats at the gym” and other similar phrases in reference to the athletes), there’s no question that sleep is taking a back seat to the grand prize.

For the Olympians, balancing harsh training schedules with the everyday stresses of their normal lives, including school, work and caring for families, as well as dealing with the time change in China, can be a recipe for disaster when all is said and done. In addition to the everyday physical stresses their bodies undergo as a result of their dedication to their sport, many Olympians often travel all over the world to attend qualifying events and World Championships. This, of course, affects the body’s “internal clock,” known to scientists as the “suprachiasmic nucleus” (SCN). Shifts in schedule and in exposure to light can disrupt the work of the SCN and make humans feel out-of-sorts and tired.

While the Olympics bring this issue into focus right now, elite athletes aren’t the only ones subjected to the rigors of harsh schedules. In fact millions of high school athletes across the country are about to subject themselves and their internal clocks to similar hardships as a new school year begins. The pressures of balancing studying, homework, and performing well in their chosen sport can easily increase a high-school athlete’s stress level. The importance of sleep in this situation is even more apparent. Besides the obvious benefits of sleep, such as helping an athlete to stay focused and energized, sleep is a time for your body to repair damage caused by stress. Your cells produce more protein while you are sleeping, which helps to form the building blocks for cells, allowing them to repair damage.

So, while the dedication that Olympians display should be an inspiration to athletes everywhere, the sacrifices these athletes make should also be kept in mind. Their love and commitment to their sport come at a price – and that often includes depriving themselves of the benefits of a balanced sleep schedule. The bottom line is, while there is a competitive side to all of us, we cannot allow it to put our bodies at risk.