Often Yawning? This Could Be A Sign There Is A Problem In The Body

Illustration of sleepiness (Photo: Freepik/EyeEm)

JAKARTA - Often yawning while working, in the middle of meetings, or sitting relaxed in the afternoon? Don't take it lightly. According to experts, this habit can be a sign that your body is experiencing serious sleep shortages. This can be dangerous, both for your health and safety.

In an official statement from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), it was stated that excessive drowsiness during the day could have a major impact on performance, health, and even the risk of accidents.

"Drowsiness is a serious health problem with a very broad impact," said Dr. Eric Olson, President of AASM as well as a lung specialist and sleeping medicine at the Mayo Clinic, Minnesota, quoted from the CNN page.

Many people think drowsiness during the day is just because of boring meetings or too monotonous activities. However, experts emphasize that this could be a sign that your body does not get quality sleep at night.

"sleeping at a meeting is not normal. People who sleep enough will not fall asleep even though the meeting is boring," explained Kristen Knutson, a sleep expert from Northwestern University.

Knutson added that drowsiness during the day can reduce performance and indicate sleep disturbances such as sleep apnea or insomnia.

While lack of sleep persists continuously, the brain can begin to experience microsleep, which is a short sleep for several seconds that occurs without realizing it. This can be very dangerous, especially if it occurs while driving or operating heavy equipment.

"The brain can 'die for a moment' for two to ten seconds without you knowing it," said Dr. Indira Gurubhavatula, professor of sleep treatment from Penn Medicine.

"What is more dangerous, we often feel fine when we don't actually. The ability of the brain assesses that our own condition decreases when we lack sleep," he added.

According to Dr. Gurubhagavatula, a sense of drowsiness that needs to be watched out for include if you often:

- Drowsiness after lunch without drinking alcohol

- Sleep while sitting still in public places

- Sleepiness while being a passenger of the car

- It's hard to sit upright because your body feels weak

- Feeling a rotating room or shaking hands

If this happens, you should consult a doctor or sleeping specialist. You can also evaluate drowsiness with the Epworth Sleepiness Scale, which is a simple questionnaire to measure drowsiness in various daily situations.

In addition to sleep disorders, a daily lifestyle can also trigger prolonged drowsiness. For example, excessive caffeine or alcohol consumption, smoking or using marijuana, sleeping in a room that is too bright, cold, hot, or noisy, and lack of physical activity.

"Many of my patients were surprised to learn that their sleep improved by stopping one glass of alcohol at night," said Dr. Gurubhavatula.

"And for marijuana, it actually makes you sleep less well and makes the body more tired the next day." he added.