CAPE TOWN - Terrible traffic and working too hard. Those are among the reasons South Africans say are killing their sleep patterns.And it’s not only leading to grumpiness and lower productivity, it’s also costing the economy billions.A study conducted by a Stellenbosch University student traces the amount of money lost to the economy because of a lack of adequate sleep.
The research found one night of less than six hours sleep negatively impacts cognitive performance as badly as two completely sleepless nights. And the average South African knows it. One woman shared: "I can work for X amount of hours and then I feel like, oh I'm a zombie I need to go sleep again."Another says a lack of sleep affects her productivity. "It affects me in a bad way, because of grumpiness, your workload, you’re not fresh in the morning.