Objective measures of sleep quality have not declined over the last 50  years

In the popular media, as well as the sleep research literature, it is widely stated that average sleep duration has declined by as much as two hours over the last 50 years. It is argued that modern society has caused us to reduce our sleep, and that this is likely a key  contributor to recent epidemics of obesity, diabetes, and Alzheimer's Disease. Furthermore, although certain somnolent behaviors, such as sleeping late on weekends or falling asleep in the daytime, have been observed for many decades, the current zeitgeist is to assume that these behaviors are ind icative of a new norm of chronically insufficient sleep.
Source: Sleep Medicine Reviews - Category: Sleep Medicine Authors: Tags: Letter to the Editor Source Type: research