Why do some people need to sleep more than others?

Why do some people need to sleep more than others?

From Do you really know? by Bababam

April 28, 2026 · 5 min

About this episode

This episode explores why sleep needs vary among individuals and how modern life affects sleep duration.

As the years go by, we're getting less and less sleep. A survey by Chemist4U in 2022 found that Brits get just 6 hours and 10 minutes of sleep per night on average. Economic stress and the overwhelming demands of modern life have been blamed for this, but there’s no real evidence to back that up. Still the fact remains that not getting enough sleep can significantly impact our daily lives, so it’s a source of real frustration. Doesn’t everyone need eight hours then? Does our sleep pattern change as we age? Can someone be naturally inclined to be a morning person or a night owl? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions! To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: ⁠What's the happiest country in the world?⁠ ⁠Why are young people going back to flip phones?⁠ ⁠What are the strangest reactions caused by an orgasm?⁠ Production : Bababam A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance. First Broadcast: 30/3/2024 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

People in this episode

Host: Joseph Chance

Topics covered

  • sleep patterns
  • sleep duration
  • age and sleep
  • morning person
  • night owl
  • modern life stress

Keywords

  • sleep
  • sleep needs
  • sleep patterns
  • morning person
  • night owl
  • modern life
  • sleep survey

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Chemist4U

More episodes of Do you really know?

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Do you really know? podcast page.