Portable Planet

More than half of American women (60%) say they only get a good night’s sleep a few nights per week or less and 67% say they frequently experience a sleep problem. Additionally, 43% say that daytime sleepiness interferes with their daily activities, according to a new poll released today by the National Sleep Foundation (NSF). Women’s lack of sleep affects virtually every aspect of their time-pressed lives, leaving them late for work, stressed out, too tired for sex and little time for their friends.

NSF’s 2007 Sleep in America poll sought to look at the sleep patterns of adult women (ages 18-64), as the NSF’s 2005 Sleep in America poll found that women are more likely to experience sleep problems than men. The new 2007 poll found that women of all ages are experiencing sleep problems, which change and increase in severity as they move through the different biological stages of their lives. Interestingly, lifestyle also plays a significant, often negative, role in women’s sleep and daytime alertness. Working mothers (72%) and single working women (68%) are more likely to experience symptoms of sleep problems like insomnia. But, stay-at-home mothers report a high level of overall sleep problems, with 74% saying they are experiencing symptoms of insomnia at least a few nights each week, 59% saying they frequently wake up feeling un-refreshed and 9% report co-sleeping with a child or infant, which adds to the sleep disturbances they experience each night.

American women are struggling to cope with this lack of sleep. Although women’s lifestyles are compromised due to lack of sleep, they keep going. Eighty percent of women say that when they experience sleepiness during the day they just accept it and keep going. However, in order to keep going, 65% are likely to use caffeinated beverages, with 37% of all women consuming three or more caffeinated beverages per day. And, despite being frequently tired, women are not heading to bed earlier. In the hour prior to going to bed, instead of retiring early, 87% say they watch television, 60% complete the remainder of their household chores, 37% do activities with children, 36% do activities with other family, 36% are on the Internet and 21% do work related to their job at least a few nights a week.

Poor sleep is associated with poor mood. The majority of women reported being bothered by worrying too much about things (80%) and/or being stressed out or anxious (79%). Sleep problems often co-exist with mood disturbances. In fact, more than one-half of the women polled (55%) reported that they felt unhappy, sad or depressed in the past month and one-third (36%) reported that they recently felt hopeless about the future. The relationship between sleep and mood is bi-directional. Mood effects can cause poor sleep and poor sleep can put someone at a greater risk for symptoms of depression and anxiety.

“Women of all ages are burning the candle at both ends and as a result they are sleepless and stressed out,” said Richard L. Gelula, NSF’s chief executive officer. “Poor sleep impacts every aspect of a woman’s life, as well as her health. This year, we are asking women to take the steps necessary to make healthy sleep a higher priority in their lives and in the lives of their families.”

Source: NSF Press Release