America’s chronic sleep deprivation problem has been laid bare in a DailyMail.com interactive map based on official data. It reveals that almost a third of adults routinely fail to get the bare minimum of seven hours of sleep every night recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Despite New York City and Las Vegas being known as the cities that never sleep, it is actually Hawaii that is the most sleep-deprived in the nation.
As many as two in five residents in the state (40 percent) fail to get seven hours of sleep every night, figures showed.
At the other end of the scale was Colorado with the lowest level of sleep deprivation, but even here more than a quarter of adults (26.8 percent) were still ranked as sleep deprived.
It comes after DailyMail.com also revealed America’s most unhealthy states, with West Virginia, Kentucky and Arkansas ranking bottom of the list.
Ten states with most sleep deprivation
- Hawaii – 39.4% of adults sleep less than seven hours a night
- West Virginia – 39.2%
- Kentucky – 38.6%
- Alabama – 38.3%
- Louisiana – 36%
- Georgia – 35.8%
- Ohio – 35.5%, Pennsylvania – 35.5%
- Nevada – 35.1%
- Arkansas – 35%, Mississippi – 35%
- Indiana – 34.9%
% of adults sleeping less than seven hours a night. Data from BRFSS survey. Data is from the year 2020.
Ten states with least sleep deprivation
- Colorado – 26.8% of adults sleep less than seven hours a night
- Minnesota – 27%
- South Dakota – 28.1%
- Vermont – 28.2%, Nebraska – 28.2%
- Oregon – 28.3%
- Montana – 28.9%
- Idaho – 29.3%
- Washington – 29.7%
- Wisconsin – 30%
- North Dakota – 30.1% New Hampshire – 30.1%
% of adults sleeping less than seven hours a night
The report was compiled using data from the CDC’s Behavioural Risk Factor Surveillance System.
This surveyed 400,000 Americans nationwide on whether they got sufficient sleep, defined as at least seven hours a night. The report is from 2020, the latest available.
The CDC says all Americans should be getting seven to nine hours of sleep every night. Children aged six to 12 years need nine to 12 hours a night, while teenagers should get eight to ten hours.
Scientists say that getting less than seven hours a night leaves Americans at risk of a myriad of health problems including weight gain, diabetes, heart disease and worse concentration. It can also put them at higher risk of car accidents.
Similarly, a lack of sleep is also proven to trigger chinks in the armor of the immune system — leaving someone more at risk of infections.
Data showed about a third of adults fail to get at least seven hours of sleep a night until they are 65 years old. From there, the levels drop to 26 percent — but this is still more than a quarter of older adults getting less than seven hours a night
Data showed men are more likely to get insufficient sleep compared to women
Those on the lowest wages were most likely to have insufficient sleep, while those on the highest were least likely. Insufficient sleep in the lowest income brackets was linked to shift work and long hours
Rounding out the bottom five states were West Virginia (39.2 percent of adults having less than seven hours a night), Kentucky (38.6 percent), Alabama (38.3 percent), and Louisiana (36 percent).
At the other end of the scale were Minnesota (27 percent), South Dakota (28.1 percent), Vermont (28.2 percent), Nebraska (28.2 percent), and Oregon (28.3 percent).
New York ranked near the national average with 32.9 percent of adults getting less than seven hours a night. Nevada was the eighth most sleep-deprived state in the nation at 35.1 percent.
Experts at the Washington-based Sleep Foundation said Hawaii likely had the most insufficient sleep out of any nation because of its time zones.
It is three hours behind the west coast and six hours behind the east coast while having a large remote-working population — which may leave many residents with poor sleep patterns.
Dr Valerie Cacho, a physician on the islands, added that the expense of living on the islands could also be driving stress, keeping people up at night.
Data shows people in the Pacific Islander/Hawaiian ethnic group are most likely to get too little sleep, which may be linked to having lower incomes than other ethnic groups. This means they are more likely to be doing shift work, which can cause sleep deprivation.
For West Virginia and Kentucky, experts said the higher rates of insufficient sleep could be linked to its surging obesity rate.
The states have the highest rates of obesity in America, with more than four in ten adults obese.
This puts more residents at risk of sleep apnea — when weight on the airways causes them to close while someone is asleep, causing the individual to wake-up coughing and spluttering because they cannot breathe.
On the other hand, Colorado ranked top of the nation for sleep.
Scientists suggest this may be because people in the state get more leisure time than those in other areas.
This allows them to exercise more, for example, which is known to be a key benefit before falling asleep.
It also has a lower obesity rate than the national average, falling at about 23.6 percent.
In terms of education, those who went on to more education post-high school were most likely to be sleep deprived. But those who went to college were least likely
By ethnic group, people in the Hawaiian and Pacific Islander group were most likely to be sleep-deprived. For comparison, those from Asian and White backgrounds were least likely to be sleep-deprived
Nationwide, data shows about 34 percent of adults are sleep-deprived — getting less than seven hours a night — from the ages of 18 to 64 years.
This drops to 26 percent when adults are over 65 years old, but that is still more than a quarter of adults getting insufficient sleep.
Men are more likely than women to get insufficient sleep overall, with 33.3 percent saying they sleep less than seven hours a night compared to 32.1 percent of women.
People on the lowest incomes are also most likely to be sleep-deprived, with nearly two in five of those earning less than $25,000 a year failing to get seven hours a night.
At the other end of the scale were those on the highest incomes — above $75,000 a year — with 30 percent saying they got insufficient sleep.
The data was compiled by addiction specialists at the Diamond Rehab Lab in Thailand, a luxury rehabilitation clinic offering stays from 28 days upwards.
A spokesperson for the lab said: ‘It’s essential to understand how critical sleep is to the most basic of functions in the human body and how much of a risk factor insufficient sleep can be for disease.
‘One of the causes for poor mental and physical health is a lack of sleep.
‘With socioeconomic factors impacting our everyday such as the cost-of-living crisis, it can be estimated that these overall percentages will rise.’
Why do we need sleep?
Sleep dispenses a multitude of health-ensuring benefits — and they’re yours to pick up as a repeat prescription every 24 hours, should you choose.
It enriches a diversity of functions within the brain, including our ability to learn, memorize and make logical decisions.
Sleep also recalibrates our emotional brain circuits, allowing us to navigate the social and psychological challenges of the next day with cool-headed composure.
We are even beginning to understand the most impervious of all conscious experiences: the dream.
Dreaming provides a unique set of benefits, including soothing painful memories and inspiring creativity, as I will be explaining next week.
Downstairs in the body, sleep restocks the armory of our immune system, helping to fight malignancy, preventing infection, and warding off all manner of illnesses.
Sleep also reforms the body’s metabolic state by fine-tuning the balance of insulin and circulating glucose. It regulates our appetite, helping to control body weight by encouraging healthy food selection rather than impulsive choices.
It is also needed to maintain a flourishing microbiome within your gut, where so much of our nutritional health begins.
Adequate sleep is also closely tied to the fitness of our cardiovascular system, lowering blood pressure while keeping our hearts in fine condition.
Recall the last time you had the flu. Miserable, wasn’t it? Runny nose, aching bones, sore throat, heavy cough, and a total lack of energy. You probably just wanted to curl up in bed and sleep. As well you should.
Your body is trying to sleep itself well. Sleep fights against infection and sickness by deploying weaponry from your immune arsenal and cladding you with protection.
When you do fall ill, the immune system actively stimulates the sleep system, demanding more bed rest to help reinforce the war effort. Reduce sleep for even a single night, and that invisible suit of immune armor is rudely stripped from your body.
| State | % of adults sleeping less than seven hours a night |
|---|---|
| Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West VirginiaWisconsinWyoming |
38.3% 31.8% 32.7% 35% 31.2% 26.8% 32.1% 33.2% 32.9% 35.8% 39.4% 29.3% 31.1% 34.9% 30.6% 32% 38.6% 36% 30.5% 33.6% 31.1% 34.2% 27% 35% 33% 28.9% 28.2% 35.1% 30.1% 32.3% 30.5% 32.9% 31.6% 30.1% 35.5% 33.2% 28.3% 35.5% 32.5% 33.7% 28.1% 33.7% 33.2% 30.9% 28.2% 33.6% 29.7% 39.2% 30%31.7% |
