11 Facts About Sleep

The average person needs between seven and nine hours of sleep.
Sleep helps you remember important information. During REM sleep (a phase of the cycle characterized by rapid eye movement), your brain determines what’s important to know and stores it for future use. (Key take-away: Get some quality zzzzz's before your next big test.)
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has estimated that more than 100,000 auto crashes annually are caused by drowsy drivers and add up to more than 1,500 deaths and tens of thousands of injuries.
Nearly 30 percent of American adults sleep less than 7 hours per night.
Lack of sleep can result in a number of issues, including fatigue, irritability, lack of concentration, and increased stress. In the long run, a reduced amount of sleep can lead to a weakened immune system, depression, and high blood pressure.
According to a University of Buffalo study, people who reported sleeping less than 6 hours a night were found to have a higher glucose levels in their blood, increasing their risk for diabetes.
10% of Americans suffer from sleep disorders such as sleep apnea, insomnia, and narcolepsy.
Dreams don’t actually serve a purpose. They’re actually a meaningless byproduct of sleep and consciousness.
Most people can't stay awake for longer than 48 hours, but one man stayed awake for almost 19 days. As a result, he suffered hallucinations, paranoia, blurred vision, slurred speech and memory and concentration lapses.
Too much sleep may be too much of a good thing. Nights of elongated slumber can negatively disrupt the body’s ability to use insulin, which increases the risk of diabetes later on in life.
The average person spends about 649,401 hours sleeping during his or her lifetime.