The first record was set by Tom Rounds, a radio journalist who stayed awake for 260 hours. He did this in the window of a department store in Honolulu, watched by passersby. He did it to gain publicity and promote the radio station he worked for. His record was broken in 1963/64 by Randy Gardner, a 17-year-old high school student from San Diego, California, who conducted an experiment on himself.
How Long Can You Stay Awake? The Famous Randy Gardner Experiment
During this experiment, Randy stayed awake for 264 hours. Other attempts to break Gardner’s record have been made since, but they were not conducted in strictly controlled conditions, making their results difficult to verify.
Gardner was monitored by William Dement, an American sleep researcher and founder of the Sleep Research Center at Stanford University. Dement recorded that during the experiment, Gardner experienced significant cognitive and sensory impairments. His condition returned to normal after sleeping for over 14 hours, although Gardner later complained of insomnia. However, it is unclear exactly what happened to Gardner’s brain or whether he experienced brief episodes of "microsleep", when a person loses consciousness for a few seconds. Gardner's achievement did not settle the question, and to this day, we do not have a definitive answer to how long a person can stay awake.
What Happens to the Body When It Lacks Sleep
Sleep deprivation occurs when we don’t sleep as much as our bodies need. Newborns sleep most of the day, and older children and teenagers need more sleep than adults. Experts suggest that adults should sleep no less than seven hours per day. However, individual sleep needs can vary slightly from person to person.
There is no doubt that regular sleep deprivation is harmful to health. Studies have shown that it increases the risk of developing conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, and obesity. Sleep deprivation is particularly dangerous when we are doing something that requires focused attention, such as driving a car. There is also an extremely rare disorder called fatal familial insomnia (FFI), which leads to rapid death. This condition is caused by a genetic mutation that results in the faulty construction of a protein. These abnormal proteins accumulate in the region of the brain that regulates sleep, and within 12-18 months of the first symptom, the affected person dies.
24 Hours Without Sleep - Feeling Drunk
More serious effects of sleep deprivation typically begin to manifest after 24 hours of wakefulness. We become sleepy, irritable, and have trouble concentrating and remembering, especially with short-term memory. We lack patience and struggle to think clearly. Physiologically, there are elevated blood sugar levels, increased production of cortisol and adrenaline, and muscle tension. In this state, our ability to perform complex, attention-demanding tasks is significantly reduced.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that after 24 hours without sleep, our condition is similar to having a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.10%.
48 Hours Without Sleep - Microsleep Begins
After 48 hours without sleep, we experience extreme fatigue, and our cognitive abilities are significantly impaired. In addition, brief, unnoticed moments of lost consciousness, known as microsleep, begin to occur. This is when the brain shuts down for a few seconds.
Three Days Without Sleep - Severe Cognitive Impairment
After three days without sleep, cognitive function becomes severely impaired. There is extreme fatigue, an inability to concentrate, memory problems, severe mood swings, and even paranoia. In this state, it becomes difficult to communicate normally with others, and we are unable to follow more complex instructions. A 2015 study showed that staying awake for 72 hours significantly increases heart rate, worsens mood, and impairs cognitive function.
The long-term effects of sleep deprivation are undoubtedly harmful to health. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have shown that sleep disorders are associated with higher stress levels (increased by as much as one-third). Moreover, they increase the risk of depression and anxiety disorders, and the risk of heart disease triples, according to recent research conducted at the University of South Florida (USA).
