Can getting too much sleep be a danger to your health?  We hear a lot about the impact on your health if you do not get enough sleep, but rarely do we ever hear anything about getting more than enough sleep.  It seems in today's day and age people often struggle with not having enough time to get things done.  Often, in our busy lives we struggle to get the amount of sleep we each require, and in some cases it even takes low priority.  So, is there really such a thing as too much of a good thing when it comes to sleep?

Actually the answer is yes, if you sleep too much at night it may cause health problems.  Oversleeping has been linked to such health issues, such as depression, diabetes and obesity.  Your lifestyle, age, and the activities you are involved in on a daily basis dictate the amount of sleep you should get each night.  For instance, if you lead an active lifestyle, your body may require more hours of sleep at night in order to recover.

People who suffer from extreme sleepiness throughout the day may be suffering from a sleeping disorder called hypersomnia.  This disorder may cause a person to sleep unusually long periods of time, well above the recommended amount.  Other symptoms that hypersomnia suffers may have are: anxiety, low energy and memory problems.  It stands to reason that oversleeping must cause some side effects. 

Oversleeping and diabetes were linked in a study that was done on 9000 Americans.  It was found that people who slept for more than nine hours a night had a 50% greater chance of diabetes than people who slept for seven hours.  This was actually the same finding for people who slept less than five hours per night.  Also, people who overslept were 21% more likely to be obese over a six-year period, than people who slept for the recommended amount of time.

It is important to your health that you receive the recommended amount of sleep you need to stay healthy and alert throughout the day.  Often sleeping too long can make you feel tired and sluggish upon waking, leaving you with little ambition to get things done during the day.  If you struggle to wake up in the morning, try setting an alarm and place it far enough away from the bed so you will have to get up to shut it off.  Also, try to set a morning routine that will give you purpose to get up in the morning and stay awake.

Do you question if you are getting enough sleep?  Check out this article to see how to test if you are getting a sufficient amount of sleep.