Catching a few Zzzzzz’s

“I love sleep. My life has a tendency to fall apart when I’m awake, you know?” Ernest Hemingway once said. 
It appears Hemingway wasn’t the only one who found value in sleep. Minnesotans also like to catch their Zzzzz’s. And now we’re being labeled as some of the best sleepers in the country. 
It’s time to give ourselves a pat on the back as Minnesota came in third place with sleep, only to be outdone by South Dakota and Colorado. The sleep study amongst adults shows South Dakota at 71.6 percent, Colorado 71.5 percent and Minnesota 70.8 percent. 
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published a study last week showing Minnesota loves to sleep. Most Minnesotans get enough sleep on a regular basis. In fact, we’re getting seven hours or more of sleep in a 24-hour period. 
Sleep experts say we are beating the odds as a sleep-enriched state in a sleep-deprived country. 
The study found that a third of Americans don’t get enough sleep, which is associated with chronic illnesses like obesity, diabetes and poor mental health. Lack of sleep has long been a growing concern in our society.
And what are the major obstacles to preventing us from getting the sleep we need?
It’s caffeine, the increasing prevalence of 24/7 industries and those electronic devices that glow and light up the bedroom, according to experts. 
An investigation into the sleeping habits of Americans has revealed that just over half of the population is getting more than the recommended seven hours of sleep a night. 
Getting enough sleep certainly won’t solve all of our problems, but it’s proven to be an important component to a healthy lifestyle. Sleep is probably a good thing for us to learn how to master because we will spend nearly one-third of our life hitting the pillow. 
Ahh, I’m already yawning and yearning for my favorite sofa and pillow. Excuse me while I take a little catnap.
Whew, that felt good. I hope you didn’t mind. Okay, back to writing the rest of this column.
As long as we’re on the topic of sleep, some other research just came out showing many people should set their thermostat a few degrees lower in or