Think you know about sleep? Given we sleep for up to 1/3 of our lives, here are some fun facts that many of us don’t know.

1. The average person falls asleep in seven minutes, while research shows it should take up to 15 minutes and if it is less than 5 then you are likely sleep deprived
2. Australia’s Koala bear sleeps for 20-22 hours a day making it the sleepiest animal on the planet. Their diet is primarily made up of Eucalyptus leaves which substantially lack nutrients. Sleeping slows down their metabolism allowing the leaves to stay in the digestive system for longer and therefore more nutrients can be absorbed.
3. Wild elephants are said to sleep for only 2 hours a night, making them the lightest known snoozers of any animal. No wonder they have a temper!
4. Sleep experts have discovered a direct link between people’s favourite sleeping positions and their personalities. This is also according to Professor Idzikowski, suggesting that those who sleep in the fetal position “may appear tough but are actually sensitive souls right to their core.”
5. We all dream, our brains are very active throughout the night, however, when we wake, we often don’t remember. In fact, within 5 minutes of waking up, 50% of your dream is forgotten.
6. Research shows that having a newborn baby impacts men’s sleep more than women’s, however, women need 1 hour more sleep then men.
7. Two-thirds of a cat’s life is spent asleep. This will come as no surprise to most cat owners. Every spot in the house is a sofa bed to them.
8. Not all dreams are in color. While most people report dreaming in color, a small percentage of people claim to only dream in black and white.
9. Women are 40 percent more likely than men to experience insomnia during their lives.
10. Parents of newborn babies lose 6 months worth of sleep in the first 2 years of their child’s life.
11. Each child in a mother’s household increases her risk of getting insufficient sleep by 46%.
12. Up to 66% of people talk in their sleep at some point in their lives, but only 17% of people say it has happened in the last three months.
13. Fear is said not to be the main emotion in nightmares. Instead, researchers have found that it’s most often feelings of sadness, guilt, and confusion.
14. Research has shown that up to 15% of us are sleepwalkers. Scary huh? That means in a group of 10 people it is likely 2 of you will walk around at night!
15. Sleep deprivation will kill you more quickly than food deprivation. The average person can survive 2 weeks without H2O but only 10 days without sleep
16. The longest time a human has gone without sleep is 11 days and 25 minutes set by a Californian student named Randy Gardner in 1964. 
17. Humans are the only mammals that willingly delay sleep. How nice it must be to just go to sleep whenever and wherever you are!
18. Over the age of 40, 69 percent of men and 76 percent of women get up at least once a night to use the restroom..
19. Tiredness peaks twice a day, at 2 am and 2 pm. That’s why you’re less alert after lunch.
20.  The oldest known pillow dates back to Mesopotamia over 9,000 years ago. The ancient Egyptians also used these types of pillows, but they were more interested in protecting the head because it was seen as the spiritual center of their bodies — comfort was strictly optional

Pillows are important because they keep the head aligned with the neck and backbone during sleep. If a person's spine or neck is not in a neutral position, they may wake up during the night, causing sleep loss.

Visit www.mypillow.co.uk to get the only pillow you will ever need