Sleep habits and complaints of adults in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, in 1987 and 1995

Abstract

This study compares the prevalence of complaints of insomnia, excessive diurnal sleepiness, parasomnias, and sleep habits of the adult population in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, estimated in surveys carried out in 1987 and 1995. Representative samples of 1000 adult residents per survey were interviewed using a validated structured sleep questionnaire, the "UNIFESP Sleep Questionnaire". Difficulty maintaining sleep, difficulty initiating sleep and early morning awakening, occurring at least three times a week, were reported in 1987 and 1995, by 15.8/27.6, 13.9/19.1, and 10.6/14.2% of the interviewees, respectively, significantly increasing throughout time. These sleep problems were more often found among women. Frequencies of excessive diurnal sleepiness and sleep attacks were unchanged comparing 1987 with 1995 (4.5 vs 3.8 and 3.1 vs 3.0%, respectively). Parasomnia complaints remained unchanged, with the exception of leg cramps, which doubled in prevalence from 1987 to 1995 (2.6 to 5.8%). Snoring was the most common parasomnia (21.5% in 1995), reported more often by men than by women, and somnambulism was the least common (approximately 1%). Besides sleeping slightly less, interviewees went to bed and woke up later in 1995. Approximately 12% of the subjects in both surveys had consulted a physician due to sleep problems and 3.0% reported habitual use of sleep-promoting substances in 1995. Overall, there was a significant increase in insomnia complaints from 1987 to 1995 in the general population of the city of São Paulo. This major change over a little under a decade should be considered as an important public health issue.

Sleep disorders among undergraduate students in Southern Brazil

“…As we have seen in our study, females presented a higher prevalence of sleep problems (65.7%) in relation to men (54.1%). Regarding the role of socioeconomic level in sleep alterations, the association between low socioeconomic level and sleep disorders has been already demonstrated [9]. However, this association was not found in our study probably due to the fact that our sample was not representative of the general young population in this aspect.…”

“…However, the estimates indicate high frequencies in the general population, especially among young adults [1][2][3]. Even with certain lifestyle characteristics of young people, exemplified by social and academic demands, lack of parental guidance, diminished total sleep time, and delayed bedtime, [4][5][6][7][8][9] some sleep disorders more prevalent in young people should be investigated, as delayed sleep phase syndrome and psychopsysiologic insomnia [10]. It is well established that unhealthy sleep quality is related to functional impairments, exemplified by diminished attention, alertness, cognitive processing, and memory [11].…”

Does Elite Sport Degrade Sleep Quality? A Systematic Review

“… F female, M male, NR not reported, SD standard deviation a Any of sleep onset, sleep maintenance and daytime sleepiness problems in last 6 months b As categorised by the Sleep Disorders Questionnaire[72] c As measured by the Federal University of Sâo Paulo (UNIFESP) Sleep Questionnaire [75] d Any of sleep onset, sleep maintenance, early morning awakening, unrefreshing sleep, or disturbing dreams e Insomnia Severity Index (ISI) f As measured by the Athlete Sleep Screening Questionnaire (ASSQ) [67]…”

Consistency and reliability of the Brazilian Portuguese version of the Mini-Sleep Questionnaire in undergraduate students

“…Sleep disorders are highly prevalent in the general population, and are recognized as a major public health problem [1,2]. It is estimated that 40 million people in the United States have some kind of sleep problem, insomnia being the most frequent complaint [3].…”