With so many of us juggling work, children and social lives, it’s perhaps no wonder that the average amount of sleep we’re getting has declined in recent years.

　　许多人每天都忙于生计、教育子女、社交应酬，不难相信，近年来人们的平均睡眠时间有所减少。

　　I had no idea that cutting back on sleep by just an hour or two a night could have such adevastating effect on everything from my concentration, memory and patience to skin tone.But that’s what I discovered within days of starting a fascinating experiment with me as a guinea pig.

　　从前我并不知道每晚减少一到两小时的睡眠时间会对人各方面的健康情况，如注意力，记忆力和耐心程度等造成这样严重的损害，直到我用短短几天的时间，自己充当实验室里的小白鼠，进行了一场饶有趣味的实验。

　　作者亲测：左图为睡8小时，右图为睡6小时。

　　For the study, my sleep is to be six hours a night for a five-day stretch, with bedtimes at 11pm and my alarm at 5am. Surveys have found this is a common pattern for those who regularly have six hours.

　　在实验过程中，我每晚的睡眠时间为6小时，每周连续5天如此，就寝时间为晚上11点，早晨闹钟设在5点。有研究表明，每晚睡眠6小时的人常以此为作息规律。

　　And the effects are noticeable. After just two days, I’m tired, snappy, forgetful and tearful. I’m also constantly hungry and craving sweet snacks to pep me up.

　　实验结果非常明显。短短两天之后，我就感到十分疲惫、困倦、健忘、总是不自觉的有眼泪湿润眼球。我常感到饥饿，为了打起精神，就常常贪食甜点。

　　Most shocking, though, are the results of the scan of my face. My pores have more than doubled in size and the red areas have increased by 50 per cent. No wonder my husband declares: ‘You look lousy.’

　　不过，最令我惊讶的实验结果是我做面部扫描后得到的结果。我皮肤上的毛孔增大了一倍，红肿的区域增多了50%。难怪我的丈夫肯定地说，“你看起来很憔悴。”

　　I’m appalled and begin to mentally tot up the damage my early years of motherhood may have wrought.

　　我感到惊恐，我开始为自己初为人母的几年里由于缺乏睡眠对身体造成的损害进行清算。

　　To make matters worse, Dr Guy Meadows confirms my worst fears: ‘You can’t repair a sleep debt by having loads more sleep the next day. Your daytime activities are like a house party, and after every one of those you need a clean-up operation to remove the toxins amassed during the day.

　　更令人惊恐的是，盖·梅德思医生确证了我最大的隐忧：“想用第二天多睡一点的方法来补救前一天亏欠的睡眠时间是无济于事的。我们日间的活动就像一场室内排队，每场排队之后，我们都必须要有一个清场的程序，来清楚这一天里体内积存的毒素。”

　　From now on, I’m going to make sure I get the full eight hours —or I fear I will suffer the consequences.

　　从现在开始，我要确保自己有满满八小时的睡眠时间——否则我担心我将会为此付出代价。

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（责任编辑：何莹莹）