According to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey, about 11 percent of Americans did not get enough “sleep or rest” on any night in the past 30 days. A little more than 30 percent said they got enough rest or sleep every night in the last month.
A quarter of those surveyed who were unemployed said they didn’t get enough rest any night in the last 30 days.
The study seems to confirm the anecdotal belief that west coasters are more laid back than the east coast. Twelve of the 14 best-sleeping states were west of the Mississippi.
The report wasn’t very in depth, as they just asked people about their perception of how much sleep they got, not the actual hours.
The Health Consequences
Sleep problems can lead to other health problems, surprisingly maybe even diabetes. Researchers aren’t quite sure if lack of sleep directly causes diabetes or if it’s associated in some other way. But, even a remote piece of evidence should be enough to think twice about watching your favorite late night talk show.
Sleep Aids
Exercise is a great way to help your sleep problems… assuming you aren’t just staying up late by choice. The National Sleep Foundation reports that afternoon exercise can help with deeper sleep, and even cut down the amount of time it takes for you to fall asleep. Evening exercise may have the opposite effect, while morning workouts seem to get the best results.
Keep in mind that there may be occasions when prescribed sleep aids are appropriate, but they shouldn’t be seen as the long-term answer.