• Home
  • Bio
  • Blog
  • Articles
  • Books
  • Speaking
  • Media Room
  • Contact

Suzanne Bohan

Journalist Author Speaker

Sleep patterns and social disparities

November 1, 2013 by Suzanne Bohan Leave a Comment

11954225271522744573liftarn_A_person_sleeping.svg.med

Only those living in neighborhoods that are part of gang territory can understand the challenge of getting a good night’s sleep. Gun shots going off at all hours aren’t uncommon, residents have told me, and after sundown road racing and squealing tires break the quiet.  For many, anxiety never fully recedes that a stray bullet will strike their home or someone will break in, even if they have an alarm system.

A novel new study, reported in the The Stony Brook Statesman, shows just how hard it is getting those recommended 8 hours. Dr. Lauren Hale, associate professor of Preventive Medicine at Stony Brook, analyzed the relationship between sleep patterns and economic, social and health disparities.

Hale found that the more socially disadvantaged an individual is, in terms of income and education, the more likely that person will report a sleeping problem. She compared African-Americans and Caucasians.

Blacks are twice as likely to be short sleepers when compared to their white counterparts. A 2007 Chicago-based study similarly found that African-American men get one less hour of sleep per night compared to white males.

High school graduates are 40 percent more likely to be short sleepers, compared to college graduates, the study reported.

Losing one hour of sleep, night after night, has a substantial health effect. The National Institutes of Health said sleep deficiency is linked to many chronic health problems, such as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, stroke, obesity and depression. It also leads to more injuries and accidents.

The NIH gives strategies for getting a full night’s rest, although the list doesn’t address the unique challenges faced by these neighborhoods.

Filed Under: Health disparities

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

 RSS

Resources on health disparities work in the U.S.
READ MORE

Recent Posts

  • Type in a ZIP code in this new atlas, and see how place shapes health
  • Access to credit and savings plays a key role in promoting health
  • Childhood hunger linked to violent behavior later in life
  • Dishing out nutrition lessons during soccer practice
  • A new community garden springs up after land group adopts health perspective

Archives

  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • February 2018
  • October 2017
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • June 2016
  • August 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • March 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • February 2013

Copyright © 2022 Suzanne Bohan
Terms of Service & Privacy Policy | Data Access Request