Losing sleep makes you more selfish because of this change in the brain | The Sun
SLEEPY people are selfish and tight-fisted, scientists say.
Not getting enough kip dulls activity in parts of the brain which are vital for feeling generous and sociable.
Scientists at the University of California Berkeley found people are much less willing to help a stranger or donate cash to charity when they are tired.
Even losing just an hour of shut-eye leads to a drop in the amount of money people donate to good causes.
The NHS says adults should get seven to nine hours in bed per night – but three quarters of Brits sleep less than they should.
Study author Professor Matthew Walker said: “Helping is a core feature of humankind so this demonstrates that a lack of sleep degrades the fabric of human society itself.
“How we operate as a social species seems profoundly dependent on how much sleep we are getting.”
Co-author Dr Eti Ben Simon added: “If you're not getting enough sleep, it doesn't just hurt your own wellbeing – it hurts your entire social circle, including strangers.”
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The study, in the journal PLOS Biology, quizzed people after one night’s bad sleep and over a longer period of time – and counted charity donations after the clocks went back.
Questioning found people were 7.5 per cent less likely to help a stranger or even a friend when sleep-deprived, compared to when they were well-rested.
Three out of four people – 78 per cent – experienced the drop in helpfulness.
And a study of millions of charity donations in the US found an 11 per cent drop in their value in the month after the clocks went back for daylight savings, compared to the month before.
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Losing just a single hour’s sleep when the clocks changed was enough to make a whole society less generous with their cash, the scientists said.
MRI scans revealed less activity in parts of the brain called the social cognition network when someone was drained – and this made them meaner.
Dr Liz Halstead, from the Psychology and Human Development department at University College London, was not involved in the study but said: “This study really shows how important sleep is in human social function.
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“We know insufficient sleep affects mood, memory and decision-making abilities – so it can have a big impact on people.
“Research shows that over 50 per cent of people do not get the right amount of sleep for them and that will have big implications for their interactions with other people.”
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