The better off sleep better

The employed and self-employed enjoy much better sleep than those out of work, according to Understanding Society, the world’s largest longitudinal household study. Those who are unemployed are over 40 per cent more likely to report difficulty staying asleep than those in employment (having controlled for age and gender differences). However, job satisfaction affects the quality of sleep with 33 per cent of the most dissatisfied employees report poor sleep quality compared to only 18 per cent of the most satisfied.

Analysis of the early data from Understanding Society based on 14,000 UK households found that overall the best sleep was reported by people with higher levels of education and by married people. The type of work a person does also impacts on sleep, with those in routine occupations reporting worse sleep than those in professional occupations.

Professor Sara Arber at the University of Surrey who analysed the findings said: "Given the links between sleep, social and economic circumstances and poor health found in this and other surveys, health promotion campaigns should be open to the possibility that the increased incidence of sleep problems among the disadvantaged in society may be one factor leading to their poorer health."

Understanding Society is funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and managed by the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) at the University of Essex. It follows 40,000 UK household over many years, and sleep data will be collected annually.

Initial analysis of the sleep data collected in the first survey also found that:

Men and women

* women are more likely to report problems getting to sleep within 30 minutes, 24 per cent on three or more nights a week, compared to 18 per cent of men
* problems getting to sleep on three or more nights per week are particularly high under age 25, then decline slightly for men with age, but increase with age for women
* half of men and women over age 65 report sleep maintenance problems on three or more nights a week, compared to under a fifth of men and a third of women under 25
* More men than women report that snoring or coughing disturbs their sleep, 30 per cent of men and 20 per cent of women more than once a week
* women are more likely to negatively rate their sleep quality, 26 per cent compared to 20 per cent of men

Sleep medication

* one in 10 people report taking sleeping medication on three or more nights a week (9 per cent of men and 10 per cent of women)
* 25 per cent of women and 15 per cent of men over 85 report taking sleeping medication on three or more nights a week

Researchers working on Understanding Society have also examined the data from the perspective of work and sleep. 15,000 employees were asked questions about their work and sleep patterns.