AS PART OF his training in the lead up to the record attempt, Papapetrou has been staying awake for up to 37 hours straight, sleeping for three to four hours and then staying up again for another 37 hours.
But what kind of affect will such a large-scale lack of sleep have on his mind and body?
Dr Savvas Papacostas is a Senior Consultant Neurologist at the Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics, and he told the Mail that, “sleep is a vital part of our lives and let us not forget that we actually spend one third of our lifetime asleep.”
He explained that the brain does not shut down during sleep and that “during some parts of sleep, the brain is actually more active, for example, when we are dreaming.”
According to the neurologist, during sleep, “learning becomes consolidated and physical growth also takes place.
“If we deprive ourselves of sleep, even for only one night, the ill effects will quickly become apparent.”
Sleep deprivation can have serious effects on health in the form of physical and mental impairments. Inadequate rest impairs our ability to think, to handle stress, to maintain a healthy immune system and to moderate our emotions. In fact, sleep is so important to our overall health that total sleep deprivation has been proven to be fatal: Lab rats denied the chance to rest die within two to three weeks.
According to sleepdeprivation.com, without adequate rest, the brain’s ability to function quickly deteriorates. The brain works harder to counteract sleep deprivation effects, but operates less effectively: Concentration levels drop and memory becomes impaired.
Similarly, the brain’s ability to problem solve is greatly impaired. Decision-making abilities are compromised and the brain falls into rigid thought patterns that make it difficult to generate new problem-solving ideas.
Other typical effects of sleep deprivation include: Aching muscles, blurred vision, clinical depression, daytime drowsiness, decreased mental activity and concentration, depersonalisation, dizziness, dark circles under the eyes, fainting, general confusion, hallucinations (visual and auditory), hand tremors, headache, hyperactivity, hypertension, impatience, irritability, memory lapses or loss, nausea, nystagmus (rapid involuntary rhythmic eye movement), psychosis-like symptoms, pallor, slowed reaction time, slurred and/or nonsensical speech, sore throat, stuffy nose, severe yawning, increased desire for sexual activity and delirium.
Dramatic weight changes, especially weight gain, are also common effects of sleep deprivation. Because the amount and quality of the sleep we get affects our hormone levels, namely our levels of leptin and ghrelin, many physiological processes that depend on these hormone levels to function properly, including appetite, are affected by our sleep.
While leptin is a hormone that affects our feelings of fullness and satisfaction after a meal, ghrelin is the hormone that stimulates our appetites. When you suffer from sleep deprivation, your body’s levels of leptin fall while ghrelin levels increase. This means that you end up feeling hungrier without really feeling satisfied by what you eat, causing you to eat more and, consequently, gain weight.
Randy Gardner holds the scientifically-documented record for the longest period of time a human being has intentionally gone without sleep not using stimulants of any kind. In 1964, as a 17-year-old high school student in San Diego, California, Gardner stayed awake for 264 hours (eleven days).
