Is It Unnatural To Sleep In Eight-Hour Intervals?

by David Wang
(Stanford, CA)

BBC News published an article two weeks ago (February 22, 2012) declaring that the eight-hour sleep pattern may actually be unnatural: research grounded on historical evidence has shown that humans actually used to sleep in two distinct chunks. We have always viewed our seven to nine hours of unbroken sleep, and indeed, we have tried a myriad of tools and aids to help us achieve this sublime goal. From pillow-top mattresses to Sleep Number beds to sleeping pills, our efforts to create a perfect slumber environment has resulted in a multi-billion dollar industry.

Roger Ekirch, a professor at Virginia Tech, discusses in his book At Day’s Close: Night in Times Past the history of our intervals of slumber. He suggests that before industrial times, people typically divided up their sleep into two bouts known as first and second sleep. Around an hour after sunset, people would go to bed and sleep for about four hours. After this first sleep, they would get out of bed for a couple hours, and then return to their peaceful snooze at around 2 AM and sleep for another four hours. The period of wakefulness between first and second sleep was actually a period of substantial activity: individuals would often read, write, perform chores, or perhaps even have some sexual intimacy.

Ekirch exclaims that because of technological advances and cultural development, having a first and second sleep eventually faded out over the course of history, and by the 1920s, dividing our interval of rest into two had completely disappeared. Because of the introduction of street lighting, domestic lighting, and coffee houses, socializing through the night became a legitimate activity.

Sleep psychologist Gregg Jacobs declares that waking up during the night is actually an element of normal human physiology. Furthermore, the belief that we must sleep in one integrated interval may be damaging: today, people who wake up at night might panic or feel anxiety. Conversely, in the past, people would often use the period of wakefulness to regulate stress and meditate on their dreams. In the future, the next time you wake up in the middle of the night, don’t worry about struggling to get back asleep. Instead, take the time to relax, digest the events of the past day, and get pumped for tomorrow!