(NBC NEWSCHANNEL) Right when we're springing forward to Daylight Saving Time, comes a study that shows 75-percent of all Americans missing at least one day of work; some missing up to 5 days a year just to catch up on sleep.
"So, we're really talking about sleep deprivation here and I think it's really starting to reach epidemic proportions,” said sleep specialist Michael Breus, PhD .
Breus, who has written several books on getting a good night's sleep, says the most common obstacle to sleeping well is stress. "One of the biggest things my patients tell me is they can't turn off their brain at night and that can have a pretty big effect on your ability to not only fall asleep but to get into deep sleep."
He also says not having the right mattress, sheet, pillow lighting and sound can interrupt sleep as well as drinking caffeine and alcohol too close to bedtime.
He says the best bet for good sleep is going to bed and waking-up the same time every day. "The more consistent you are with that, the more your brain knows when to sleep.”
And that should start this weekend. even though the clock will read an hour later.
Daylight Saving Time 2017 begins at 2 a.m. Sunday March 12 in South Florida.