Sleep as a Determinant of Health
Introduction[edit | edit source]
Social determinates of health are factors that are not medical in nature, that can and do influence a person's health. These factors can include things such as:
- Economic stability
- Physical Environment
- Education
- Food
- Health care system
- Social context
These factors can influence health outcomes such as:
- Life expectancy
- Healthcare expenditures
- Health status
- Functional limitations
Sleep as a determinant of health[edit | edit source]
There is some evidence that determinants account for around 17-20% of people not getting enough good quality sleep[1]. There is a conflict of information on the belief that the population of a lower socioeconomic status experience worse sleep than individual of a higher status. There are different components that are related to the social determinants of health that can contribute.
Race/Ethnicity[edit | edit source]
Studies have found that people who are non-white report being shorter sleepers (<6 hours) than people who report being white[2]. There are several different aspects to why this could be. There has been found to be differences in beliefs about sleep with different racial/ethnic groups. Non-whites tend to have improper beliefs about the importance of sleep or have unhealthy sleep habits (using their bed for things other than sleep or using technology in bed). Additionally, physical environment can vary between races/ethnicities. Having a more crowed household can affect sleep habits. Areas with high levels of noise, crime, or unhealthy social habits (drinking, food consumption), affect quality of sleep.
Income[edit | edit source]
There tends to be more disturbances in sleep as income increases from $25,00 to >$75,000[1]. Very short sleep (<5 hours) is reported more common in people making <$25,000 and in those making $65,000 to $75,000[2].
Education[edit | edit source]
Education has been found to be a weaker predictor of insufficient sleep compared to other factors. College graduates have the highest levels of insufficient sleep with individuals who did not complete high school with the lowest, however, there is not much difference between them[1].
Employment[edit | edit source]
There is variability with the aspects of employment. Individuals who do shift work or have multiple jobs are more likely to have insufficient sleep patterns[2]. More physically demanding jobs can cause sleep issues as well. Individuals who are retired or unemployed have the least amount of reported levels of insufficient sleep[1].
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Grandner, M. A., Jackson, N. J., Izci-Balserak, B., Gallagher, R. A., Murray-Bachmann, R., Williams, N. J., Patel, N. P., & Jean-Louis, G. (2015). Social and Behavioral Determinants of Perceived Insufficient Sleep. Frontiers in neurology, 6, 112. https://doi.org/10.3389/fneur.2015.00112
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Grandner MA, Williams NJ, Knutson KL, Roberts D, Jean-Louis G. Sleep disparity, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic position. Sleep Med. 2016;18:7-18. doi:10.1016/j.sleep.2015.01.020
