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Single parents, women less likely to get enough sleep

Women who are single parents were more likely to report lack of sleep and sleep-related problems, compared with adults in two-parent households or with no children aged younger than 18 years, according to recently published data.

“Among families with children under age 18, the percentage that are single-parent families has risen to 32% over the past several decades. Research has shown that single parents have fewer financial resources, and this report finds that sleep is another domain in which single-parent families are disadvantaged,” the researchers wrote.

Researchers used data from the 2013 to 2014 National Health Interview Survey to assess sleep quality, duration and medication use among adults in the United States.

Results demonstrated that among all family types, women were more likely than men to frequently have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep and wake not feeling rested, according to the researchers.

Single parents who were living with children aged younger than 18 years were more likely to report shorter sleep duration (42.6%), compared with adults in two-parent households (32.7%) or adults living without children aged younger than 18 years (31%). Additionally, single parents were more likely to report having trouble falling asleep or staying asleep four or more times per week.  

Four in 10 adults in two-parent households reported not feeling well-rested when waking up, compared with half of adults in single-parent households, according to the researchers.

Use of sleep medication four or more times a week was least common among adults in two-parent families, compared to other family-types.

“Nearly one-third of U.S. adults do not meet the recommendation of getting at least 7 hours of sleep daily. Prior research has found that marital status and whether young children live in the household are associated with sleep duration and quality. … Overall, single parents with children under age 18 years were more likely to have shorter sleep duration than adults in two-parent families with children under age 18 years and adults living without children under age 18,” the researchers wrote. – by Casey Hower