The Vinci Autoroutes Foundation carried out a study on the risks associated with lack of sleep on the eve of leaving on vacation. Here are the results.
Salivary markers would testify to the lack of sleep. According to a study ordered by the Vinci Autoroutes Foundation on the occasion of vacation departures and carried out in the laboratory by the Sleep Center of Hôtel-Dieu – Paris Descartes University, partial sleep deprivation during two consecutive nights has the effect of modifying certain biological markers present in saliva. In short, a saliva test would make it possible to know whether a driver is in a state of fatigue or not.
To conduct their experiment, the researchers took saliva samples from 17 healthy young men who had slept only 3 hours a night (between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m.), two consecutive nights. “The results showed lower levels of cortisol recorded in the morning (- 37%) and α-amylase recorded in the afternoon (- 15%) after sleep deprivation, these variations can be analyzed as biological clues of sleep deprivation “, specify the authors of the study.
Aggression, tension, fatigue and lack of energy
The study also showed behaviorally, that a lack of sleep altered mood and led to a decrease in the feeling of calm. The levels of tension and perceived fatigue were multiplied by 3 and aggressiveness by 2, as well as confusional states. These feelings are also associated with a decrease in the feeling of vigor and sociability.
“This study confirms the deleterious effects of sleep deprivation which can have serious consequences when driving: falling asleep but also reduced ability to react to an event, and aggressive driving, writes Bernadette Moreau, general delegate of the Foundation. Vinci Autoroutes. On the eve of the Christmas holidays, these lessons deserve to be shared with as many people as possible, especially when we know that more than 8 out of 10 drivers go to bed later or get up earlier than usual when they go on a long journey “. The researchers were also interested in the level of sustained attention of the subjects and noted significantly higher levels of forgetfulness (+ 120%) and errors (twice as numerous) as a result of lack of sleep. According to Professor Damien Léger, head of the Hôtel-Dieu Sleep Center, “sleep deprivation causes a biological change in our body from the very first hours”.
On the occasion of the end of year celebrations and holiday departures therefore, the Vinci Autoroutes Foundation advises to sleep a full night before departure, to avoid traveling between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., to take breaks every two hours and change drivers regularly.
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