Sleep is essential for wellbeing and overall health. When we sleep, we allow our heart to rest and cells and tissues to repair. Loss of sleep, as can be found with those with sleep apnea or sleep disordered breathing, is associated with decline in cognitive function, and in athletes this could affect decision making and adapting to new situations. Sleep deprivation can impact accuracy, stamina, and even injury risk. Improvements in sleep duration can benefit athletes in their recovery and performance. The quality and the amount of sleep may help athletes improve athletic performance. Some studies have demonstrated improvement in faster running and shooting improvement in basketball players, and in swimmers sleeping 10 hours improved the turn times and kick strokes.
One night of sleep deprivation decreased endurance performance in treadmill runners, participants ran less distance compared to controls but their effort perception was similar to controls indicating that altered perception of effort may account for decreased endurance.
The prevalence of sleep disordered breathing in adolescent athletes was reported in 2019 by the Nippon Sport Science University, where 47 freshmen athletes completed a sleep study, the prevalence of sleep disordered breathing among those athletes reported 16 athletes with mild apnea and 2 with moderate apnea. Another study found that amateur golfers with diagnosis of sleep apnea could improve their handicaps after sleep apnea treatment.
Properly addressing sleep needs of athletes requires a thorough understanding the impacts of of circadian factors and homeostatic factors. Circadian factors include time of day, circadian misalignment and circadian rhythm disorders, while homeostatic factors include acute sleep deprivation, chronic partial sleep deprivation, medication usage, and underlying medical conditions such as concussion and obstructive sleep apnea. All of these factors can contribute to variation in athletic performance.
Sleep disordered breathing screening may prevent downstream health risks in the future. If you would like to have your sleep assesed for improved athletic performance don’t hesitate to book a sleep consultation in one of our offices near Worcester.