One in seven losing sleep over recession

ONE PERSON in seven is losing sleep over the current economic downturn, new research suggests.

The first comprehensive survey of sleep patterns since the recession started reveals that 14 per cent of people have disturbed sleep patterns as a result of it and expect the problem to get worse as the economy continues to deteriorate.

The survey was carried out among 1,000 adults throughout the State last month by TNS/mrbi before the emergency budget which added to the financial pressure on households.

Overall, 29 per cent of Irish adults reported having difficulty sleeping at night. Of those, a third, or 10 per cent of the overall population, cited either worries about their job or financial pressures as the reason why they have problems sleeping.

Of those respondents who suffer from sleep problems, one- third of people thought that there was nothing that could be done to improve sleep.

The biggest problem for people with sleep deprivation is having difficulty falling asleep (71 per cent) while 56 per cent found it hard to maintain sleep.

The side effects of poor sleep included low energy/fatigue (78 per cent), poor concentration (64 per cent), irritability with friends, family or colleagues (51 per cent) and forgetfulness (47 per cent).

Between 1 and 10 per cent of the population suffers from insomnia at any given time, rising to 25 per cent in the elderly. The definition of insomnia is a person who has more sleepless nights than nights with sleep in a given month.

Sleep expert Dr Alan Wade, of CPS Research UK, one of Britain’s biggest clinical research laboratories, said sleeplessness was a problem that was “completely universal”. Yet insomnia is not taken seriously as an illness though its side effects can be a factor in heart disease, depression and road accidents.

The report findings coincided with the launch of a website, sleep-well.ie, and with the launch of a drug Circadin which is claimed to help people with sleep difficulties and especially those over the age of 55.

The drug acts by stimulating levels of melatonin which is a type of hormone that is produced naturally by the body after it gets dark.

Dr Catherine Crowe, a specialist in sleep disorders at the Sleep Laboratory in the Mater Private Hospital, said insomnia needed to be treated in a multi-faceted way. She described Circadin as an “effective agent” which did not have the side effects and dependency issues that were associated with other hypnotics, especially for those in the older age groups.