ajc.com Holiday Guide

Millions of Americans may be indulging in risky behavior that they don't even stop to think twice about: sleeping around during the holidays.

We're not talking sex here.

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Related: • More news about sleep • More health news WAYS TO PREVENT TRANSIENT INSOMNIA • To avoid problems for your guests, ask if they have any special sleep requirements. • Don't use an old mattress in a guest bedroom. • Tell guests ahead of time what the sleeping arrangements will be. • For older guests, make sure the pathways to the bathroom are clear and that lighting is good at night. • Make sure your guest quarters are away from bright lighting in the rest of the house. • Use soft, clean sheets on all guest beds. If you are the visitor and know that you have trouble sleeping in strange beds, you can help yourself in a few important ways: • Avoid caffeinated beverages. • Get plenty of sleep before you leave; don't get on the road sleep-deprived. • Take your own pillow with you. It's not so much a security blanket as it is a guarantee that you won't wake up with a sore neck. • Take catnaps when you can. Sources: Dr. Ulysses Magalang, medical director of the Ohio State University Sleep Disorders Center, and Dr. Russell Rosenberg, director of the Northside Hospital Sleep Medicine Institute [an error occurred while processing this directive]

We're talking bad holiday beds and poor sleeping arrangements — air mattresses that feel little better than a cheap inner tube, sleeper sofas so bad even the dog won't curl up on them, and mattresses that jiggle.

These bad beds can not only leave you irritable and hurt your back but also increase your risk of being in an auto crash, experts said.

"The driving issue is the biggest concern," said Dr. Ulysses Magalang, medical director of the Ohio State University Sleep Disorders Center. "It's very important to make sure you're getting enough sleep during the holidays if you are driving."

There's even a name for what happens from sleeping in bad beds and in unfamiliar surroundings — transient insomnia. The results are short-term, but they can be serious.

"It can cause relationship problems, driving while drowsy, and just a general lack of enjoyment of the holidays," said Dr. Russell Rosenberg, director of the Northside Hospital Sleep Medicine Institute.

As Thanksgiving driving begins today in earnest, the issue of driving drowsy is especially significant.

Thanksgiving, which often sees families scurrying from one household to the next in a very few number of days, is sometimes the deadliest holiday on the roads. In 2003, for example, the number of Thanksgiving road fatalities — 560 — surpassed the number of traffic fatalities on any other holiday, according to the National Center for Statistics and Analysis in Washington.

While it is impossible to know how many of those fatalities were related to sleep deprivation, experts can estimate. About 3.6 percent of all fatal crashes are believed to be related to drowsy driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Sheila Green, an Atlanta mother of three, knows the feeling of sleep deprivation all too well. When she visits her mother in Chicago, she has to sleep on a sofa — in her mother's room. The sofa is bad enough, but that's not the only problem.

"She likes the TV on, and I like the TV off," Green said. "I couldn't sleep at all. I had a great time, but I couldn't wait to get back home."

When family comes to visit her, it's not much better. She gives up her bed and sleeps on a sofa in the living room.

"And then the teenagers keep me up all night," Green said.

No one seems to know for certain how many people have sleep problems during the holidays because of bad beds, but studies do suggest that at least 75 percent of adults do not adapt well to sleeping in beds other than their own, Rosenberg said.

And sleep specialists do know that it takes about three days for most adults to adapt to a new "sleep environment," Rosenberg said.

With children, it's a different story. Most can fall asleep anywhere, any time the mood hits them.

The older a person gets, however, the more difficult it can be to adjust, sleep experts said.

Many people err in using an old mattress in the guest bedroom, sleep experts said. Often, people are reluctant to spring for a new mattress that is only seldom used, and so the guest room gets the old mattress.

That can not only interfere with a good night's sleep, but exacerbate back and neck problems that your guests might have.

Bad sleeper sofas can also do the same.

While few of the effects of bad beds are long-term, it is wise to think ahead, experts said, if for no other reason than to enjoy the holidays to their fullest.

And, in some cases, there is even a benefit to sleeping around.

"You may wake up more refreshed and ready to go than usual," said Nancy Shark, executive director of the Better Sleep Council, a mattress industry trade group in Alexandria, Va. "You may find out that you need a new sleep surface at home."