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By Jill Ross, HealthAtoZ contributing writer
Even in their sleep, men are from Mars and women are from Venus.
A sleep survey shows that men and women in snoozeland can be as different as, well, night and day. Men and women surveyed both surmise that men get a better night's sleep - but their perception is wrong.
Women are biologically programmed to sleep more soundly than men, says Joyce A. Walsleben, Ph.D., director of the Sleep Disorders Center for New York University School of Medicine.
They are? Someone tell the men. In the Bruskin Research survey of 1,000 Americans ages 18 and older, one of five men ages 18 to 34 concede they take longer than an hour to fall asleep. Also, more than 30 percent of men in that age group admit to falling asleep at work - almost twice the response of everyone else polled.
Snoring: the battle of the sexes
What else separates the men from the women at bedtime?
- Women in general are more than twice as likely as men to say their partner's snoring bothers them most. Women ages 50 to 64 are four times more likely to complain.
- When unable to sleep, almost four times as many women are more likely than men to pray (perhaps for silence - or at least patience with their mate's snoring).
- Although most Americans are in sync with their partners when it comes to falling asleep right after sex. Of those who stay awake, close to twice as many men (24 percent) than women (14 percent) take 30 minutes or longer to fall asleep after having sex.
- TV tops the charts as the number one activity for men and women when they are unable to fall asleep. However, as they get older, men watch more TV when they can't sleep and women tend to watch less. Men ages 50 to 64 are twice as likely as women in that age group to watch TV when they can't sleep.
Sleeping tight
Despite their differences - and the snoring - men and women surveyed say they prefer to sleep with their significant other. Sixty-four percent admit that they sleep better with their partner than without, and 91 percent of couples sleep together in the same bed.
Just who gets a better night's sleep really depends more upon a person's age and stage of life than their gender, according to the survey results. For example, more than 85 percent of Americans ages 50 and older say they have no difficulty waking up in the morning. Also, eight out of 10 don't press their snooze button. However, younger generations have a harder time getting the day started. More than half of Americans ages 18 to 24 press their snooze buttons at least once.
Here's one finding that may not shock anyone. Nearly half of all those surveyed claim they got their best sleep during childhood.
"We all slept our best before puberty," Walseben says. "As adults, our sleep fragments for many different reasons. Stress is one culprit. Poor sleep habits, ingesting things such as alcohol and caffeinated products, needing medications for other illnesses, having body aches and general discomfort all interfere with our sleep."
Tips for a good night's sleep
Besides making sure you're sleeping on a comfortable mattress (the survey was, after all, sponsored by Serta, the mattress maker), Walseben suggests the sleepless in America follow the "four Rs of sleep."
The four Rs are:
- Regularize your sleeping and waking patterns. Rise the same time daily. Avoid naps, unless they are regular, and try to go to sleep the same amount of time each night.
- Ritualize. Keep the bedroom quiet; use it only for sleep and sex. Go to bed only when you're sleepy.
- Relax. Learn some relaxation techniques, such as yoga, to reduce stress.
- Resist sleep-busting behavior, such as smoking or drinking alcohol or caffeinated beverages. Also, avoid strenuous exercise and eating a heavy meal before bed.
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External Source
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Sleep Disorders Center for New York University School of Medicine
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This article was reviewed and updated June 2007.
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