Men vs. Women - Who Sleeps Better?

Men Vs. Women - Who Sleeps Better

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Part of my day job is to help get spouses and bed partners back together by treating patients for snoring and sleep apnea which often disrupts at least 1 if not more people’s sleep in the household.

I’ve learned firsthand that oftentimes that so many of us in relationships are on totally different sleep wavelengths…pun intended!

Men will typically say “I sleep fine nothing wrong here”

Women, on the other hand will typically say “I’m exhausted and I’m tired of being tired. I can’t function”

So.,

Let’s talk about the difference between men and women and how they sleep.

Both can have problems but they may come from different sources.

Let’s start with men:

You Have Too Many Other Priorities

  • Majority of my patients are guys mid 30’s to early 50’s

  • “Men-O-Pause” - Which is what I call the gradual decline in a healthy lifestyle, hormones and typically the addition of kids and work demands

  • Family life, work, young kids, commutes, stress, all eat away at your sleep

  • Solution….can you delegate, or eliminate certain items to help prioritize your sleep?

Men are at a Higher Risk for Sleep Apnea

  • Differences in upper airway anatomy (men actually have larger airway space but tend to be more “collapsible” when asleep, 

  • The fat distribution (total neck soft tissue volume was significantly greater in men than in women)

Other Male Medical Issues

  • Biggest one = enlarged prostate (affects more than half of men by the age of 60)

  • Decreased testosterone tied to OSA (obstructive sleep apnea)

  • Which leads to lower energy and insomnia

  • Which then can lead to erectile dysfunction

  • Which then can lead to depression



And Now For The Women

Total Sleep Time Needed

  • Research shows they need more sleep

  • According to a study out of the UK. They expend more mental energy each day and multitask and use more of their brains. 

  • Therefore women require about 20 more minutes of sleep than men do to recover and regenerate

Circadian rhythm

  • Women's circadian clocks are set to an earlier hour than men's, making them more inclined to fall asleep earlier and also to wake earlier.

  • Also circadian cycles are shorter for women than for men, by six minutes. Which over time can add up.

Hormones

  • More sleep disruptions during the premenstrual and menstrual time of the month 

  • Lower production of melatonin during the luteal phase or second half of the menstrual cycle makes it harder to stay asleep at night, leaving you feeling sleepy the next day.

  • Pregnancy…weight gain = sleep-disordered breathing (temporary)?

  • Pain, frequent urination from bladder pressure during pregnancy can also cause sleepless nights

  • Childbearing ….One study revealed that women lose hundreds of hours of sleep caring for a child during the first year of the child’s life.

Snoring and Sleep apnea

  • Percentage of women who snore is going up (25% for women and 40% for men)

  • Women are still the majority “recipients” of noise pollution from their bed partners

Body temps:

  • Women are more sensitive to cold

  • A 2015 study by Dutch scientists, found that women are comfortable at a temperature 2.5C warmer than men

  • Men and women roughly have the same core temp but our perception of temperature depends more on skin temperature, which, for women, tends to be lower

    • Estrogen is to blame for this: because it slightly thickens the blood, reducing the flow to capillaries that supply the body’s extremities. This means that, in women, blood flow to the tips of fingers and toes tends to shut off more readily when it is cold

    • And we know that we will have trouble sleeping if our extremities are colder than our core temp

Menopause:- Hormones

  • Hot flashes - which can disrupt sleep

  • This one can be an entire blog post on it’s own

Women Don't Handle Sleep Deprivation Well

  • Compared with men, women are impacted more by sleep deprivation, especially when it comes to their mental state. 

  • They report more anger, depression, and hostility than men when they don’t get enough sleep.

So next time you get into a friendly debate about who sleeps better or worse, you may want to think twice as there can be a lot more going on that you think.



Jay Khorsandi