What Causes Sleep Problems?

Psycologists and other scientists who study the causes of sleep disorders have shown that such problems can directly or indirectly by tied to abnormalities in the following systems:

Psycological Systems

• Brain and nervous system
• Cardiovascular system
• Metabolic functions
• Immune system

Furthermore, unhealthy conditions, disorder and diseases can also cause sleep problems, including:

• Pathological sleepiness, insomnia and accidents
• Hypertension and elevated cardiovascular risks (MI, stoke)
• Emotional disorder (depretion, bipolar disorder)
• Obesity; metabolic syndrome and diabetes
• Alcohol and drag abuse  

Groups that are at particular risk for sleep deprivation include night shift workers, physicians (average sleep = 6.5 hours a day; residents = 5 hours a day), truck drivers, parents and teenagers. (American Academy of Sleep Medicine and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute Working Group on Problem Sleepiness. 1997).