Neurologists have stated that women require more sleep than men because women’s brains are more active and engaged in multitasking and processing emotions intensely, leading to greater cognitive demands.
They noted that the differences in brain function and hormonal fluctuations influence sleep patterns during the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and menopause.
The physicians said due to these demands, women’s brains needed additional sleep to recover and perform optimally, emphasising that hormones like estrogen and progesterone affect sleep patterns.
The specialists noted that hormonal changes could disrupt sleep, making adequate rest even more critical for women.
They emphasised that by prioritising sleep, women could enhance memory, mood, and overall cognitive function, which prevented mental fatigue and long-term neurological issues.
According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night.
Data from the National Library of Medicine indicates that womenh require an extra 11 to 13 minutes of sleep to balance up while another states 20 minutes of sleep.
A study by Duke University in Durham, North Carolina, United States, revealed that women suffer greater health issues due to lack of sleep compared to men of the same age group.
The research, which examined 210 men and women of the same middle-aged group, concluded that women needed more sleep than men to allow the brain to recover and repair itself from stress brought by daily activities, stating that women who lack sleep are prone to depression, anger and psychological imbalance among others.
An Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences, Edward Suarez, who is the Lead author of the study, said, “We found that for women, poor sleep is strongly associated with high levels of psychological distress and greater feelings of hostility, depression, and anger.”
Speaking exclusively with PUNCH Healthwise in different interviews, the neurologists urged the women to get enough sleep to protect their brain health.
A Neurologist and Chairman of the International Institutes of Advanced Research and Training Centre at Chidicon Medical Centre, Owerri, Imo State, Professor Philip Njemanze, affirmed that women needed more sleep than men for a healthy brain and good memories, suggesting 11 minutes extra sleep.
Njemanze, a former Principal investigator of the National Aeronautic and Space Administration for the study of the ‘Brain in Space,’ said that there was wide variability in sleep span, recommending intermittent sleep during the day for women to make up for the extra sleep needed for their brain health.
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He said, “Studying the data, I recommend intermittent naps during the day for women. This would be more attuned to the mode of brain functional computation. This would allow sleep time for creating a memory of prior experience.”
Njemanze theorised that these differences might stem from how male and female brains process light, which could explain why women excel at multitasking while men focus more effectively on singular tasks.
He continued, “This difference could explain some everyday behaviours: women excel at multitasking – nurturing children, cooking, and chatting simultaneously, while men often prefer focused, singular tasks for effectiveness.
“However, this multitasking ‘superpower’ comes with a cost. The vast energy required for women’s parallel brain processing can lead to fatigue, and if proper rest or sleep is not taken, mental health challenges like depression may arise.
“Shockingly, women are nearly twice as likely as men to experience depression, underscoring the need for balanced routines and sufficient rest and sleep.”
He added that simple lifestyle adjustments, like prioritising sleep, could make a world of difference, insisting that the implications go far beyond daily life for women.
Speaking further, a Consultant Neurologist at the Iyi-Enu Mission Hospital, Ogidi, Anambra State, Dr Joe Akoma, said that science had confirmed that women not only need more quality sleep than their male counterparts, but they also have a more challenging time getting it.
He noted that societal expectations and lifestyle differences played a role in these discrepancies, however stating that the body chemistry was the real issue.
Although age and stage of life significantly influence sleep changes for both sexes, he noted that female sex hormones affect sleep quality and regulation.
“While these hormones appear to promote better sleep overall, the constant fluctuations with menstrual cycles, pregnancy, postpartum, and menopause lead to disruptions in female sleep patterns and needs, a problem that most biological males don’t have to face.
“Women in nature are overthinkers and would tend to have an increased brain activity more than men. Women tend to multi-task; they do a lot at once and are flexible and so, they use more of their actual brain than men do.
“And because of that, their sleep need is greater. This is because women’s brains are wired differently from men’s and are more complex, so their sleep needs will be slightly greater,” he added.
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