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Insomnia is a common problem that can be dangerous, with tiredness causing many accidents. About 30% of people in the UK have trouble sleeping, and 10% have serious insomnia. People sleep about an hour and a half less than they did 100 years ago. Teenagers actually need more sleep than adults because their bodies are still growing. Teenagers naturally want to go to bed and wake up later than adults, which can make them tired for school. Starting school later has shown positive results in terms of attendance and exam performance. Sleep experts believe that schools should start later. Scientists are still unsure why we need sleep, but it is not a time of complete rest and our brains are active during sleep, organizing information from the day. Track 13. How many people do you know who have trouble sleeping at night? For many of us, insomnia is part of life and not being able to get sleep isn't just annoying, it can also be very dangerous. Yes, and with us today is sleep scientist Dr Angela Moore. Welcome to the programme. Thank you. Dr Moore, how much of a problem is this do you think? Well, we know tiredness can cause accidents. More than 50% of road accidents in the USA are because of people driving when they're tired. That's amazing. Yes, it is, isn't it? And when you think 30% of people in the UK can have problems getting to sleep or staying asleep and 10% have serious insomnia, that's a lot of accidents waiting to happen. So how much sleep do you think people are getting these days? Well, 100 years ago, before electricity, people went to sleep when it got dark and woke up when it got light. But now in our 24-hour society, we sleep about an hour and a half less than we did a century ago. Well, I've got two teenagers and no one can say they're sleeping less. I'm sure a lot of parents would say that. Actually, scientists now believe teenagers need about an hour more sleep than adults. Really? Yes, it's because their bodies are still growing. Of course, teenagers don't need as much sleep as babies and small children. They need the most sleep. It's actually older people who generally need the least amount of sleep. That's very interesting. Yes, and another interesting thing about teenagers is their body clock is different. So they naturally want to go to bed and wake up about two hours later than adults. So that's why our children aren't very bright in the morning. And because they have to get up early for school, this means they can feel exhausted when they get there. Recently, a school in the north of England decided to start lessons at 10 rather than 9. With a later starting time, fewer students missed school and the exam results in English and maths were much better than the previous year. So do you think all schools should start later? Well, that's certainly what a lot of sleep experts think nowadays. So why do we need sleep? We don't really know. Scientists used to think sleep was the only time you had complete rest. But in fact, we use about the same amount of energy when we're asleep as when we're sitting on the sofa relaxing. Really? That's very surprising. Yes, and our brains are very active for some of the time we're asleep. Apparently, that's when our brains can organise information they've collected during the day. Well, it's been absolutely fascinating talking to you. Thank you for coming in today. My pleasure. Thank you.