Health fears over Britons' lack of sleep

Britons may be risking their health by not getting enough sleep, new research suggests.

A survey by hotel chain Travelodge has revealed that the average Briton gets just six hours and 21 minutes of sleep a night, almost an hour less than two years ago and well below the recommended eight hours.

The researchers speculated that this decline in sleeping hours may be down to stress brought on by the recession with money worries cited as the number one cause of sleep depravation.

It is feared that this could be having a negative impact on the nation's health, with almost a third of workers admitting to having taken a day off because of a bad night's sleep.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Stevie Williams, from the Edinburgh Sleep Centre, said: "Having sleepless nights on a long-term basis can be very detrimental to your health and it will affect your productivity and overall wellbeing.

"Therefore it's essential to invest in topping up your sleep quota when possible to ensure you are getting eight hours of sleep on a regular basis."

Another recent survey found that the UK city which suffers most from sleep problems is Aberdeen in Scotland.

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