Army aims to avoid sleep casualties

Courtesy Photo | Sleep is one part of the Performance Triad and is necessary to perform optimally.  

SEOUL, 11, SOUTH KOREA

01.06.2015

Courtesy Story

8th Army

By Cpl. Hosu Lee

SEOUL - Anyone who knows about cars can tell about the dangers of constantly redlining a vehicle’s engine. Eventually, the engine gives out.

The same thing happens when some pull “all-nighters” – that time when one stays up all night only to be so tired the next day that staying awake is impossible. Eventually, the body gives out and must rest.

“You require sleep to perform optimally,” says Col. Michael Mysliwiec, a sleep medicine specialist at Brian Allgood Community Hospital.

Mysliwiec says that just as Soldiers need to refuel with food after physical training and they also need adequate hours of sleep in order to reduce the chances of becoming a sleep casualty.

“They could be driving a military vehicle and crash or cause a major accident, or they could be doing a security mission and fall asleep,” says Mysliwiec. “Sleep is required for us to maintain our mental acuity and our cognitive function so that we could perform optimally every day.”

Lisa Young, a health educator at the U.S. Army Public Health Command, wrote in a February 2014 article that poor sleeping habits can also have long-term consequences.

“Studies have shown that not getting enough sleep can lead to an increase in heart rate and blood pressure, increases inflammation, impairs glucose tolerance, and increases in appetite,” wrote Young.
While the exact amount of sleep required to avoid becoming a sleep casualty varies between people, Mysliwiec recommends eight hours of sleep per night.

Mysliwiec says sleep is required for Soldiers to maintain mental sharpness and cognitive functions.

“People produce growth hormones, testosterone, other recovery type hormones that recovers the body and mind,” says Mysliwiec. “Although the exact pathophysiologic reason for sleep is not clearly determined, it is clear that we cannot live without sleep. Sleep is a process that allows the brain to recover.”

Even though many know the importance of sleep, some still have trouble falling asleep. Mysliwiec has a few suggestions to help people initiate sleep better.

The first is to avoid staring at the clock while trying to fall asleep.
“Either you are asleep or you are awake,” says Mysliwiec. “If you wake up, toss, turn, and can’t fall back asleep, you need to get out of bed.”

He says this will help one’s body better associate a bed with sleep. Mysliwiec recommends that Soldiers find something boring to do in order to feel sleepy again.

“My universal instruction to Soldiers since coming to Korea has been to read a field manual, or read an army regulation,” Mysliwiec says. “For most people that is something they are not going to really want to read.”

Another factor is the activities that Soldiers do before they go to bed.

Mysliwiec recommends avoiding smartphones, laptops and tablets for at least 60 minutes before sleeping.

“Blue light from any type of computer devices is definitely not recommended,” he says. “When direct light comes into our eyes, it decreases melatonin production [a naturally occurring hormone that allows us to go to sleep at night].”

It is also very important to maintain a steady sleep schedule during the week and the weekends.

For more information about the nutrition, sleep and exercise, check out the free smartphone app for iPhone and Android by searching “performance triad.”

Note: Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Kosterman contributed to this story

• Date Taken: 01.06.2015
• Date Posted: 01.07.2015 04:00
• Story ID: 151449
• Location: SEOUL, 11, KR