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Friday 10 January 2014

SLEEP DEPRIVATION: A FORM OF TORTURE IN MALAYSIA

Before I start writing, I would like to make it very clear that I don't like the idea of getting up early every morning to write articles particularly when I am not feeling well and should be sleeping. It is yarl restaurant's boss who forced me to wake up from my deep sleep and write this. Since yarl restaurant's loud and deafening kitchen hood noise can still be heard loudly and clearly even after I tried to cover my ears with two big pillows, I might as well get up and write this article. Why am I writing so much about yarl restaurant's air and noise pollution program? To fight for our right to sleep 8 hours a day. To fight for our right not to be disturbed by loud and deafening noise so early in the morning. According to the environmental laws, we are not allowed to make noise above 55dBA between 10 p.m. and 7.00 a.m. to disturb others. Even between 7.00 a.m. and 10 p.m., the noise level cannot exceed 65 dBA? How much is 60 dBA? The noise level of an ordinary conversation. What about yarl restaurant's loud motor sound ringing in our minds all the time (at an average of 17 hours a day) as though there is a noisy diesel truck parked outside our windows?

Last night, yarl restaurant turned off its noisy kitchen hood at 10.40 p.m. and that was when we could really sleep but this morning, at 6.20 a.m., yarl restaurant's selfish and irresponsible boss turned on his loud and deafening kitchen hood to chase everyone out of their bedrooms again. Did we manage to get the 8 hours sleep that we are supposed to have? No, we didn't. We only mange to sleep for 7 hours and 40 minutes and of course there have been many instance when we were allowed to sleep less than that (5-7 hours only). 56 years after independence, why is it so difficult for the citizens of Malaysia to get 8 hours of sleep a day? What's wrong with our beloved country that, as citizens of Malaysia, we have to endure loud and deafening noise and sleep deprivation as a part of our lives? What's wrong with the Kuala Lumpur City Hall? What is the Kuala Lumpur City Hall doing? When it comes to increasing our property taxes (between 100%-250%), it is extremely efficient. But when it comes to solving yarl restaurant's noise and air pollution case, it is totally useless. And of course, it does sound ridiculous, that right here in Malaysia, lawlessness still prevails. Yarl restaurant's noise and air pollution program is a very good example of lawleness not to mention the "Lynas Case" and the "Gold for Me, Cyanide for You Case". What do I mean by lawlessness? In the uncivilized world of the distant past when there was no law and order, anyone can do harm to others without fear of prosecution. That was the uncivilized past but in the 21st Century, after 56 years of independence, this kind of uncivilized act is still happening everyday in Malaysia and sad to say, it has been legalized. Why is it so? Because the Kuala Lumpur City Hall is encouraging noise pollution and sleep deprivation (a serious form of torture) by inaction even though it is an obvious fact that sleep deprivation can kill us.

My head is swinging now due to lack of sleep. Wonder how I am going to face another day at work. My boss is a very stingy boss and whenever anyone leaves the company, he would not take in any replacement. I have to do the job of two people without extra pay and in a severe state of sleep deprivation too. I have not been feeling well the past few weeks. Nothing serious though just having a cough and flu which could have healed a long time ago if only I could have enough sleep. In the past, it only took me 2 or 3 days to recover after sufficient rest and sleep. But now, I can't rest properly with yarl restaurant's kitchen hood noise and I can't have enough sleep because yarl restaurant chases me out of my bedroom very early in the mornings when I am still in my deep sleep. Luckily, I am not suffering from cancer or I would have died already. Sometimes I do wonder why, as a citizen of Malaysia, I can't even have the basic right to sleep 8 hours a day? To sleep 8 hours a day is something which everyone takes for granted but, as a citizen of Malaysia, I have to fight so hard for it over such a long period of time but after so much sufferings I am still being denied the right to sleep 8 hours a day. What is wrong with the Kuala Lumpur City Hall? What is wrong with our country? What is the meaning of RAKYAT DIUTAMAKAN? Does it mean that noise pollution is good for us? Does it mean that we have no right to sleep 8 hours a day? Does it mean that we have to cope with excessive sleepiness every day of our lives? Let's read the articles below and find out what it means!

Coping With Excessive Sleepiness

10 Things to Hate About Sleep Loss

WebMD Feature
 
You know lack of sleep can make you grumpy and foggy. You may not know what it can do to your sex life, memory, health, looks, and even ability to lose weight. Here are 10 surprising -- and serious -- effects of sleep loss.

1. Sleepiness Causes Accidents

Sleep deprivation was a factor in some of the biggest disasters in recent history: the 1979 nuclear accident at Three Mile Island, the massive Exxon Valdez oil spill, the 1986 nuclear meltdown at Chernobyl, and others.
But sleep loss is also a big public safety hazard every day on the road. Drowsiness can slow reaction time as much as driving drunk. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that fatigue is a cause in 100,000 auto crashes and 1,550 crash-related deaths a year in the U.S. The problem is greatest among people under 25 years old.
Studies show that sleep loss and poor-quality sleep also lead to accidents and injuries on the job. In one study, workers who complained about excessive daytime sleepiness had significantly more work accidents, particularly repeated work accidents. They also had more sick days per accident.

2. Sleep Loss Dumbs You Down

Sleep plays a critical role in thinking and learning. Lack of sleep hurts these cognitive processes in many ways. First, it impairs attention, alertness, concentration, reasoning, and problem solving. This makes it more difficult to learn efficiently.
Second, during the night, various sleep cycles play a role in “consolidating” memories in the mind. If you don’t get enough sleep, you won’t be able to remember what you learned and experienced during the day.

3. Sleep Deprivation Can Lead to Serious Health Problems

Sleep disorders and chronic sleep loss can put you at risk for:
  • Heart disease
  • Heart attack
  • Heart failure
  • Irregular heartbeat
  • High blood pressure
  • Stroke
  • Diabetes
According to some estimates, 90% of people with insomnia -- a sleep disorder characterized by trouble falling and staying asleep -- also have another health condition.

4. Lack of Sleep Kills Sex Drive

Sleep specialists say that sleep-deprived men and women report lower libidos and less interest in sex. Depleted energy, sleepiness, and increased tension may be largely to blame.
For men with sleep apnea, a respiratory problem that interrupts sleep, there may be another factor in the sexual slump. A study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism in 2002 suggests that many men with sleep apnea also have low testosterone levels. In the study, nearly half of the men who suffered from severe sleep apnea also secreted abnormally low levels of testosterone during the night.

5. Sleepiness Is Depressing

Over time, lack of sleep and sleep disorders can contribute to the symptoms of depression. In a 2005 Sleep in America poll, people who were diagnosed with depression or anxiety were more likely to sleep less than six hours at night.
The most common sleep disorder, insomnia, has the strongest link to depression. In a 2007 study of 10,000 people, those with insomnia were five times as likely to develop depression as those without. In fact, insomnia is often one of the first symptoms of depression.
Insomnia and depression feed on each other. Sleep loss often aggravates the symptoms of depression, and depression can make it more difficult to fall asleep. On the positive side, treating sleep problems can help depression and its symptoms, and vice versa.

6. Lack of Sleep Ages Your Skin

Most people have experienced sallow skin and puffy eyes after a few nights of missed sleep. But it turns out that chronic sleep loss can lead to lackluster skin, fine lines, and dark circles under the eyes.
When you don’t get enough sleep, your body releases more of the stress hormone cortisol. In excess amounts, cortisol can break down skin collagen, the protein that keeps skin smooth and elastic.
Sleep loss also causes the body to release too little human growth hormone. When we’re young, human growth hormone promotes growth. As we age, it helps increase muscle mass, thicken skin, and strengthen bones.
“It’s during deep sleep -- what we call slow-wave sleep -- that growth hormone is released,” says sleep expert Phil Gehrman, PhD. “It seems to be part of normal tissue repair -- patching the wear and tear of the day.”

7. Sleepiness Makes You Forgetful

Trying to keep your memory sharp? Try getting plenty of sleep.
In 2009, American and French researchers determined that brain events called “sharp wave ripples” are responsible for consolidating memory. The ripples also transfer learned information from the hippocampus to the neocortex of the brain, where long-term memories are stored. Sharp wave ripples occur mostly during the deepest levels of sleep.

8. Losing Sleep Can Make You Gain Weight

When it comes to body weight, it may be that if you snooze, you lose. Lack of sleep seems to be related to an increase in hunger and appetite, and possibly to obesity. According to a 2004 study, people who sleep less than six hours a day were almost 30 percent more likely to become obese than those who slept seven to nine hours.
Recent research has focused on the link between sleep and the peptides that regulate appetite. “Ghrelin stimulates hunger and leptin signals satiety to the brain and suppresses appetite,” says Siebern. “Shortened sleep time is associated with decreases in leptin and elevations in ghrelin.”
Not only does sleep loss appear to stimulate appetite. It also stimulates cravings for high-fat, high-carbohydrate foods. Ongoing studies are considering whether adequate sleep should be a standard part of weight loss programs.
 

9. Lack of Sleep May Increase Risk of Death

In the “Whitehall II Study,” British researchers looked at how sleep patterns affected the mortality of more than 10,000 British civil servants over two decades. The results, published in 2007, showed that those who had cut their sleep from seven to five hours or fewer a night nearly doubled their risk of death from all causes. In particular, lack of sleep doubled the risk of death from cardiovascular disease.

10. Sleep Loss Impairs Judgment, Especially About Sleep

Lack of sleep can affect our interpretation of events. This hurts our ability to make sound judgments because we may not assess situations accurately and act on them wisely.
Sleep-deprived people seem to be especially prone to poor judgment when it comes to assessing what lack of sleep is doing to them. In our increasingly fast-paced world, functioning on less sleep has become a kind of badge of honor. But sleep specialists say if you think you’re doing fine on less sleep, you’re probably wrong. And if you work in a profession where it’s important to be able to judge your level of functioning, this can be a big problem.
“Studies show that over time, people who are getting six hours of sleep, instead of seven or eight, begin to feel that they’ve adapted to that sleep deprivation -- they’ve gotten used to it,” Gehrman says. “But if you look at how they actually do on tests of mental alertness and performance, they continue to go downhill. So there’s a point in sleep deprivation when we lose touch with how impaired we are.”

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