Think you don't need sleep? This rare gene mutation may be why.
Imagine getting only a few hours of sleep and being raring to go the next day.
A new study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows the discovery of a gene mutation that lets some people get away with only 3-6 hours of sleep.
"They truly find themselves going to bed at say 10 p.m. and wake up at say 3 in the morning, and they are wide awake, refreshed and ready for the day," said Dr. Temitayo O. Oyegbile-Chidi, associate professor in the department of neurology at UC Davis Health.
Dr. Oyegbile-Chidi says they've known about genes associated with short sleep for a while. This is just the latest, and while it sounds great, you probably don't have it.
"What's quite special about these is they are very unique and very uncommon, so what I find is whenever a new mutation comes out, people say, 'Maybe I have that mutation. Let me get tested for that,' " she said. "And that's where I often say it's very, very rare."
So, how do you know if you're a short sleeper? Well, you can get tested, or you can ask yourself: Are you tired?
"If you find yourself managing during the week on 2-3 or 2-4 hours of sleep, but then you end up on the weekends sleeping in for 10 hours, you probably are not a short sleeper," Dr. Oyegbile-Chidi said.
So make sleep a priority. Get a routine bedtime with no screens in a cool room.
"Make sure you are actually getting a good amount of sleep and getting that 7-9 hours," Dr. Oyegbile-Chidi said.