He may know when <em>you</em> are sleeping, but the only way for Santa to get the job done is to stay up all night on December 24 -- and that can lead to some serious health concerns.
Studies have suggested that <a href="http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/11/09/driving-drowsy-as-dangerous-as-driving-drunk-studies-show/" target="_hplink">drowsy driving</a> is as dangerous as drunk driving. "You could imagine poor Santa being impaired as someone who is legally drunk," says Michael Decker, Ph.D., an associate professor at Georgia State University and spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine -- just think of the multiple reindeer pileups that could ensue. And even when he's parked on the rooftops, sleep deprivation can cause judgment to become fuzzier, meaning the wrong presents are bound to be traveling down the wrong chimneys.
What's worse is that sleep loss has a cumulative effect, and Santa has been working hard, likely cutting back on sleep, for the entire month preceding Christmas. "As people lose sleep, they have problems responding quickly to specific objects," Decker explains. "You could just imagine the things that would happen if you respond later than you need to ... it's easy to fly over the house or miss the roof."
Once the night is over, Decker recommends that Santa get some extra sleep to restore his deficit -- and while he's at it, he may want to be evaluated for sleep apnea, as obesity is a risk factor.
Alamy
