It’s nothing new that Guinness World Records is fertile territory for people eager to break the planet’s most eccentric records, whether it’s spending as much time under the ice as possible, covering themselves with bees, or skating with their bare hands. But even in the crazy Guinness universe, there are limits. Since 1997, the jury has not accepted bids from anyone who would like to claim the title of “longest sleepless night.” The reason is simple: It’s not only difficult, it’s also dangerous. Sleep deprivation carries risks, and the current record stands at an insane 453 hours and 40 minutes, almost 19 days in a row.

That didn’t stop Norme. streamer Australian, accept the challenge.

HE streamer Who doesn’t go to bed?Whether he was more or less successful in his efforts to break the record for alertness or whether his attempt was valid is debatable, but he certainly achieved something. streamer With his reckless defiance of the norm: fame. O youtuberWith over 1.2 million subscribers to his channel, he has received worldwide media coverage for both the unique nature of the challenge and the robustness of the app. prohibitions and a visit from the police.

But… what was he suggesting? To break the “record” for being awake. More or less. His goal was to reach 265 hours, over 11 days; this would surpass the record set by Randy Garner in 1964, who stayed awake through the night with no stimulation other than a few Coca-Colas, a loudspeaker, and a cold shower.

We use quotes because, as surprising as it may seem, the seizure’s record-breaking history is much more complicated. Norme may boast of beating Garner by 265 hours, but not the others Recorder They have already exceeded the 264-hour barrier, as cited by Guinness World Records.

In the 1960s, another California teenager, Jim Thomas, stayed awake for 266 hours and 30 minutes, a month later a Finn lay in bed for 267 hours without touching the bed, and then in 1986 Robert McDonald achieved the same record, each one crazier. We managed to go 453 hours and 40 minutes, or almost 19 days, without falling asleep. Dexerto explains: youtuber The Australian focused on Gardner’s goal because his goal was to set a “stimulant-free” record.

No sleep and no boredomPerhaps the prospect of watching a young Australian struggle with sleep on camera for more than 264 hours isn’t all that appealing, but to be fair Norme’s struggles were far from boring – and not just because he had the cooperation of his brother Don, who helped him stay awake with water or invited him for walks.

The controversial challenge was marked by interruptions, with YouTube blocking the stream, causing Norme to head to Kick, where he ended up. bannedTo complete the fight in front of approximately 9,000 spectators (peaking at over 40,000) he had to apply for the Rumble.

As if these platform jumps, which require him to stay away from the cameras for short periods of time, weren’t interesting in themselves, Norme was visited by the police and an ambulance because of the risk this challenge posed to his health.

So did he finally succeed in doing so? What he achieved was a live viral broadcast that lasted almost 265 hours, supposedly exceeding 264 hours without falling asleep. Whether that’s a legitimate record is debatable. And not just because of his time away from the cameras. His tally surpasses Gardner’s, but Guinness World Records itself states that the record has been broken several times since then.

It was first increased to 266 hours and 30 minutes. Then it reached 276 hours, almost 283, 288, 449 and finally the astonishing 453 hours and 40 minutes achieved by Robert McDonalds in California in the 80s.

Controversies aside, one thing is clear: Guinness stopped certifying the brand almost 30 years ago, so it’s unlikely Norme has a validator.

Is it that harmful to health? One of the advantages of having people who can stay awake for more than 250 hours is that we have practical demonstrations of how extended periods of wakefulness affect our physical and mental health. Gardner, the 1964 record holder that Norme wants to beat, sets a good example.

Dr. Dement, who was tasked with supervising Garnder during the final three days of testing, found that the young man’s analytical abilities, perception, memory and motor control were “varyingly affected” by fatigue. By the fourth day, the would-be record holder was already experiencing hallucinations and delusions, and his ability to pay attention had diminished. “It started on the fourth or fifth day and got worse. It was almost like early-stage Alzheimer’s disease caused by lack of sleep,” Gardner would admit years later in 2017.

Weight and memory loss. Do such extreme tests leave permanent results? Guinness World Records recalls that Gardner did not seem to suffer from them in particular, but decades later, at the age of 60, he suffered from insomnia. Robert McDonald managed to lose weight during his even more extreme challenge, which lasted more than 453 hours, and admitted that he had gaps and had difficulty remembering certain moments from those days. The Guinness organization states that he also did not suffer from any permanent effects from sleep deprivation.

Whether or not this is the case, experts have been warning for some time that getting enough rest is “fundamental” to health and has cardiovascular and even metabolic effects. “During periods of sleep deprivation, hidden health risks accumulate that cannot be hidden with a concealer or reversed with caffeine,” says Dr. Foldvary-Schaefer of the Clevend Clinic. “Everything from the cardiovascular system to the immune system suffers.”

Guinness World Records has stopped verifying the title due to evidence that lack of sleep is harmful both physically and mentally. The record is also complicated by the difficulty of monitoring “micro sleeps” or those who are completely sleep deprived (Agrypnia excitata“It is possible that an unfortunate victim of this situation could unknowingly become a record holder.”

A risky record. A wealth of scientific literature has proven that lack of sleep has a direct and detrimental effect on our health. The NIH warns, for example, that inadequate rest and lack of sleep can cause problems with learning, concentration, and reaction time, altering the ability to make or remember decisions, manage emotions, or adapt to change.

There’s research that goes even further, and it warns of something Norme or any other “wake-up champion” should take note of: sleep deprivation can impact the immune system, increasing the likelihood of getting sick and slowing down recovery. Now streamer In Rumble in the Rumble, the Australian shows what it’s like to return to rest after being awake for almost 12 days; but science has some bad news for him: sleep deprivation isn’t easy to make up for. Not with a good night’s sleep.

It’s hard to wake up, it’s hard to heal. A few years ago, a team of scientists conducted a study that showed that recovery from sleep deprivation takes longer than previously thought. Even among young people. Experts analyzed 13 people between the ages of 20 and 30 who slept 10% less than they needed for ten days. After seven nights of rest, none of them had managed to fully recover cognitively.

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