Sleep Insufficiency and Household Demographics in the U.S

Background: Insufficient sleep is associated with a number of chronic diseases, motor vehicle accidents, industrial disasters, as well as with impaired academic and vocational performance. In this study examine the relationship between self-perceived insufficient sleep and marital status (married, previously married, and never married) and the number of children in the household. Methods: We analyzed data from the 2008 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS), a population-based telephone survey of U.S. adults (N=400,977). As part of the core BRFSS questionnaire in 2008, respondents were asked, “During the past 30 days, for about how many days have you felt you did not get enough rest or sleep?” Results: The number of days of insufficient rest or sleep was higher for married adults with any children in their households relative to married adults in households with no children. Among previously married respondents, there was no significant gender-specific difference in insufficient rest or sleep, although the association between an increase in reported insufficient rest or sleep and the presence of one or more children in the household remained significant. Among never married respondents, women with no children in the home reported more days of insufficient sleep than men, while there was no association between the presence of children in the household and insufficient sleep among never married men. Conclusion: Thus, the presence of children in the household emerges as a possible “risk factor” for insufficient rest or sleep among adults and an important contributor to the public health of sleep in the U.S..