Americans Replace Work with Sleep in Recession

Contrary to previous reports, we aren’t staying awake worrying about the recession. A new government survey shows the average American gained sleep since the housing bubble burst and unemployment rates inflated.

The Labor Department’s 2009 American Time Use Survey reports last year we spent 17 fewer minutes a day engaged in work compared to 2007. In turn, we’re sleeping an extra six minutes. Americans ages 15 and older slept an average of eight hours and 40 minutes a day.

The numbers may be discouraging on the economic front, but from a health standpoint we’re doing quite well. The AASM recommends 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night for adults.

Women seem to be getting the most rest. Survey statistics show they had eight hours and 43 minutes of sleep in 2009. Men slept for an average of eight hours and 37 minutes. We’re sleeping extra long on weekends – about 9 hours and 20 minutes a day.

Breaking down the Labor Department report further, it appears all age groups are getting more than enough sleep:

Sleep times decreased with age. This may be because adults have more responsibilities and a reduced “sleep need.” Sleep time sharply for adults ages 65 and older. This spike is contrary to research suggesting sleep disorders including insomnia are common among older adults.

Curiously, 99.8 percent of adult men reported sleeping. The other 0.2 percent is probably explained by the survey’s margin of error, which is not listed.

So what were we doing for the rest of the extra time spent not working? In typical American fashion we spent the time watching television.

Work & Sleep: Are Adults Sleeping Less in the U.S.?

Have adults in the U.S. been getting less sleep over the past three decades? A new study examined time-use surveys to find out. The results were published in the Jan. 1 issue of the journal Sleep.

The study analyzed data from eight time-use surveys. The earliest survey was conducted in 1975. The most recent data came from the 2006 American Time Use Survey.

Surveys were completed by more than 73,000 adults. They were at least 18 years of age. “Short sleep” was defined as less than six hours of sleep, nap or rest in a 24-hour period.

Results show that the overall odds of being a short sleeper have not increased over the past 31 years. The highest proportion of short sleepers was 11.8 percent in the 1998-99 survey. The lowest proportion was 7.5 percent in the 1992-94 survey. The proportion was 9.3 percent in the 2006 survey.

“The assertion that sleep durations have declined drastically in the U.S. population in general over the past 30 years may be inaccurate,” wrote the authors.

But the study did find a significant trend for full-time workers. Their odds ratio for short sleep was increased by 19 percent.

“Longer work times seem to be the most important cofactor for short sleep,” the authors concluded.

Unmarried adults, those with some college education, and African Americans also had higher odds of short sleep. Women, older adults, Asians, Hispanics and married people were less likely to be short sleepers.

The authors noted that the 24-hour time-use surveys split the sleep period. They combined the end of one night of sleep with the beginning of the second night of sleep. Daytime sleep also was added to the total.

And time categorized as “sleep” included activities such as “resting” and “getting up.” Thus the time-use surveys may have overestimated true sleep time.

Dr. Mathias Basner wrote a commentary on the study in the same issue of Sleep. He noted that chronic, partial sleep deprivation remains an important public health issue.

Why do millions of Americans put their health at risk by failing to get enough sleep? One reason may be that short sleepers simply adjust to regular sleep loss.

“Those who do need more sleep simply may have habituated to feeling sleepy,” Basner wrote. “Many of the short sleepers may have ‘forgot­ten’ how well they could feel and perform if they satisfied their individual sleep need.”

In October the Sleep Education Blog reported on new survey data about the sleep of people in the U.S. In May it took a closer look at time-use survey data.

“Bonne Nuit”: Sleep Lessons from France

In May the Sleep Education Blog reported that people in France rank first in the world in getting the most sleep. One reason they get more sleep than Americans may be that they work four fewer hours per week.

Author Mireille Guiliano recently offered her own perspective on the sleeping prowess of the French. Guiliano grew up in provincial France and was educated in Paris. Currently she resides in Manhattan.

She has observed that Americans “seem to think it’s a badge of honor to sleep five or six hours a night.” As a result, she believes that, “Sleep…is the most neglected state of being in American life.”

How do people in France get more sleep than Americans? One key difference Guiliano noted has to do with TV.

“The French don’t watch much television,” she wrote. So while Americans are up watching late-night TV, the French are likely to be in bed by 11 p.m.

A study in the June 1 issue of the journal Sleep examined data from the 2003 to 2006 American Time Use Survey. Results show that watching TV was the primary pre-bedtime activity. People watched an average of 56 minutes of TV in the two hours before going to bed.

Guiliano added that instead of watching TV, the French tend to enjoy a relaxing dinner after work. And in addition to turning off the TV, they shut the computer down too.

What do you think? Do we have some sleep lessons to learn from the French?

Get sleep tips from the AASM on SleepEducation.com.

Image by Baloulumix

Sleep in America: A Closer Look at the Time Use Survey Data

Yesterday, the Sleep Education Blog described a new OECD report. It states that the U.S. ranks second in the world in average daily sleep time. Today, let’s take a closer look at the survey data.

The OECD report states that survey methods may vary to some degree between the 18 participating countries. In the U.S., the American Time Use Survey includes people 15 years of age and older.

The survey is conducted by telephone. Respondents report how long they slept between 4 a.m. on the previous day and 4 a.m. on the day of the survey.

So the survey doesn’t measure a person’s typical sleep duration. And “sleep time” includes both nighttime sleep and daytime naps.

The average self-reported sleep times in the survey vary by age. The 2007 American Time Use Survey shows that teens and older adults get the most sleep. Teens report sleeping about 9.5 hours per day; adults age 65 and up get about 8.9 hours of sleep per day.

People in the U.S. also tend to sleep in on the weekends. The 2007 survey shows that Americans sleep about 9.2 hours on weekend days; this is almost an hour more than the 8.3 hours they report sleeping on weekdays.

But these numbers don’t tell the whole story. The broad strokes of this survey fail to paint an accurate picture of sleep problems in the U.S.

Another survey by the NCHS shows that many U.S. adults get much less sleep on a regular basis. About 21 percent of adults reported that they usually sleep for only six hours; another eight percent usually sleep for less than 6 hours.

The OECD report and the American Time Use Survey also fail to take sleep disorders into account. It is estimated that 50 million to 70 million people in the U.S. suffer from a sleep disorder.

Common disorders such as sleep apnea can ruin your sleep quality. This can impair your health and alertness no matter how many hours of sleep you get.

Sleep Around the World: France Ranks First, U.S. Second

A new OECD report compares 2006 time use surveys from 18 countries. Results show that people in France report getting the most sleep at about 8.8 hours per day.

The U.S. ranks second, just 12 minutes behind at about 8.6 hours of sleep per day. People in Korea and Japan get the least sleep at about 7.8 hours per day.

Why do the French get more sleep than Americans? One reason may be that they work less.

The report indicates that Americans work an average of 41.3 hours per week. People in France work an average of 37.3 hours per week.

A 2007 study in the journal Sleep analyzed data from previous American Time Use Surveys. Results suggest that work time is the strongest indicator of sleep time.

Tomorrow we’ll take a closer look at the survey data. We’ll see what it does and doesn’t tell us about the sleep of people in the U.S.

Image by Mirko Garufi