rest and sleep

[optimistic pessimist]

Hi all,

1. If you want to stay healthy, you need rest and sleep.
2. If you want to stay healthy, you need to rest and sleep.

Between #1 and #2 which is better?

In #1 rest and sleep are nouns, while in #2 they are verbs.
I think both are grammatically okay, but I'd like to know which sounds more natural.

OP

 

[tedmc]

"Need to do something" as in giving advice sounds more natural and consistent with the first part.

 

[jutfrank]

I don't think you can say that one is more 'natural' than the other.

As for which is better depends on what you're trying to do with the sentence. Do you want to focus on rest and sleep as verbs or nouns?

 

[optimistic pessimist]

What I tried to mean by "better" is that as a general statement, which is more likely to be used by native English speakers.
Maybe I should have asked which sounds more natural or which is preferred by native English speakers.
OP

 

[jutfrank]

It's not a question of likeliness or preference. It's a question of being more appropriate to what the speaker wants to say.

 

[emsr2d2]

Hi all.

1. If you want to stay healthy, you need rest and sleep.
2. If you want to stay healthy, you need to rest and sleep.

Between #1 and #2, which is better?

In #1, "rest" and "sleep" are nouns, while in #2 they are verbs.
I think both are grammatically okay, but I'd like to know which sounds more natural.

[strike]OP[/strike]

What I tried to mean by "better" is, [STRIKE]that[/STRIKE] as a general statement, which is more likely to be used by native English speakers?
Maybe I should have asked which sounds more natural or which is preferred by native English speakers.
[STRIKE]OP[/STRIKE]

Please note my corrections above. Like Piscean said, they're both OK.