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BBC Learning English – 6 Minutes English / Why you need a good night’s sleep

BBC Learning English – 6 Minutes English / Why you need a good night’s sleep

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Introduction

Why is it so important to get a good night’s sleep? Georgie and Phil will discuss it and teach you some new vocabulary.

This week’s question

How much of your life does the average person spend sleeping? This:

a) half?
b) a quarter? or,
c) third?

Listen to the program to hear the answer.

Vocabulary

catch forty winks / get some sleep / doze off / take a nap
(idioms) sleep

accept
understand

sleep on this
wait until you have time to think carefully before making a decision

deprivation
absence or too little of something important, for example. food, sleep

fight or flight response
changes in the human body in response to a life-threatening situation that force us to either stay and fight the threat or flee from it

domino effect
cause other results or events, but not directly

transcript

Note. This is not a verbatim transcript.

Georgie
Hello, this is 6 minutes of English from BBC Learning English. I’m Georgie and we’re ready to start, Phil… Phil?!

Phil
Oh, sorry, Georgie, I just… catch forty winks… You know, receiving close your eyes a little, doze, take a nap…I was sleeping!

Georgie
I sleep at work! Phil, how could you?

Phil
I know, I know. Sorry, I… I didn’t sleep well last night.

Georgie
I’ll forgive you this time, but make sure you go to bed early tonight because getting a good night’s sleep is incredibly important. For example, did you know that people who get enough sleep live about five years longer than people who don’t?

Phil
Wow, a good night’s sleep can extend your life. In this program we will learn more about the benefits of sleep and, as always, we will learn some useful new vocabulary.

Georgie
But first, now that you’re awake, I have a question for you. Do you know how much of your life the average person spends sleeping? This:

a) half?
b) a quarter? or,
c) third?

Phil
Hmm, I think we spend about a third of our lives sleeping.

Georgie
Okay, I will show the correct answer at the end of the program. The question of why people sleep is not easy to answer. From an evolutionary perspective, why would it make sense to lose consciousness every night, leaving yourself vulnerable to danger? This can only mean that the benefits of sleep are enormous. Here, science journalist Ginny Smith explains some of these benefits of BBC Radio 4’s Inside Science program:

Ginny Smith
We’ve probably all experienced this: if you haven’t slept well at night and then try to get some work done, you just can’t concentrate – your brain isn’t in the right state to accept new information. But we also need to sleep after we’ve learned something new, because that’s when our brain consolidates the information – moving it from short-term storage to long-term storage, combining it with other things we already know, that old saying “if” you’re the problem sleep on thisyour brain is actually working on something at night, and you can often wake up and solve a problem in your sleep.

Phil
When we sleep, our brain renews itself and we feel refreshed in the morning. But after a bad night’s sleep, it’s harder to concentrate. We can’t acceptor understand new information.

Georgie
We also have a saying: if you have a problem, sleep on this. TO sleep on this means putting off making a decision until you have had time to think about it. But it also turns out to be scientifically true: During sleep, your brain can actually solve problems and find solutions.

Phil
But what about the other side of the story? What happens when you sleep too little or not at all? Here’s Ginny Smith again speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Inside Science:

Ginny Smith
Sleep deprivation it’s a form of stress, and we know that when you’re stressed, your type fight or flight response gets activated and it causes all these changes in your body that are geared toward immediate survival rather than long-term health. But if we’re under chronic stress – worrying about money, or a stressful job, or something that’s always going on, or life, or chronic sleep deprivation that causes that level of stress, then you may have a constantly weakened immune system that can lead to all of these incitement problems.

Georgie
The absence or too little of something important is called deprivation. Sleep deprivation is stressful for the body—so stressful that it activates fight or flight responsechanges in the human body in response to a life-threatening situation that force us to either stay and fight the threat or flee from it.

Phil
And also fight or flight responseStress from insufficient sleep over a long period also creates problems, including heart disease and a weakened immune system. Lack of sleep has these consequences side effectsit causes other things, but not directly.

Georgie
Now do you understand why getting a good night’s sleep is so important, Phil? Plus, it will no longer allow you to sleep on the job! Okay, I think it’s time to reveal the answer to my question.

Phil
Yes, you asked me how much of the average person’s life they spend sleeping, and I answered about a third.

Georgie
This was… the correct answer! Assuming you sleep eight hours a day, the average person sleeps 229,961 hours in their lifetime, or about a third of their life. Okay, let’s review the vocabulary we learned, starting with the phrases catch forty winks, sleep a little, take a nap And take a napall this means a dream.

Phil
When someone accepts information, they understand it.

Georgie
If you have a problem and you sleep on it you put off making a decision until you have had time to think about it.

Phil
Deprivation This is a lack or too little of something important, such as food or sleep.

Georgie
fight or flight response describes changes in the human body in response to a dangerous situation that force us to either stay and fight the threat or flee from it.

Phil
And finally, if something has domino effectthis indirectly causes different results. Our six minutes are up again, but don’t forget to join us next time for more trending topics and useful vocabulary here on 6 Minute English. Goodbye, bye!

Georgie
Bye!