People who lack sleep are more likely to catch colds

Yahoo – AFP, 1 Sep 2015

The results of a sleep study test showed that those who had slept less than

 six hours a night during the week leading up to the study were 4.2 times more

 likely to catch a cold compared to those who got more than seven hours of 

sleep (AFP Photo/Philippe Huguen)

Miami (AFP) - People who do not get enough sleep are four times more likely than their well-rested counterparts to catch a cold, US researchers said Monday.

The findings in the journal Sleep are based on a study of 164 volunteers who allowed themselves to be exposed to the cold virus by researchers who were also tracking their sleep habits.

First, the subjects underwent health screenings and completed questionnaires so researchers could understand factors such as stress, temperament, and alcohol and cigarette use.

Their sleep habits were measured for one week prior to the beginning of the study, which required them to stay in a hotel room in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area.

Once sequestered in the hotel, researchers administered the cold virus via nasal drops and monitored the volunteers for a week, collecting daily mucus samples to see if the virus had taken hold.

The results showed that those who had slept less than six hours a night during the week leading up to the study were 4.2 times more likely to catch the cold compared to those who got more than seven hours of sleep.

Those who slept less than five hours were 4.5 times more likely to get sick.

Short sleep was more important than any other factor in predicting subjects' likelihood

 of catching cold, it didn't matter how old people were, their stress levels, their race, 

education or income (AFP Photo/Mark Makela)

"Short sleep was more important than any other factor in predicting subjects' likelihood of catching cold," said Aric Prather, assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco, and lead author of the study.

"It didn't matter how old people were, their stress levels, their race, education or income. It didn't matter if they were a smoker. With all those things taken into account, statistically sleep still carried the day."

Previous studies have linked lack of sleep to chronic illness, premature death, susceptibility to disease, car crashes, industrial disasters and medical errors.

One in five Americans gets less than six hours of sleep on the average work night, according to a 2013 survey by the National Sleep Foundation.

Related Article:

"Recalibration of the Human Being" – Jan 7, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Carroll) - (Text Version)

"... The Common Cold

You're going to catch more colds. Why would that be? But then you're going to heal them quicker - and why would that be? The Human cold has always been a recalibration of the biological process. To catch a cold is needed, and that is why you cannot "cure" it. You must go through it. The common cold is a cyclical opportunity for the immune system to correct itself. Perhaps you didn't know that? That's why you're not going to receive the chemistry to cure the common cold. It's a recalibrating device within you. It builds up the system in a certain way that helps you, and it must be reoccurring. Don't be shocked when you catch one, and say, "Well, I didn't think that would happen because I just got through with the other one." It's recalibration. .."