Sometimes you walk into work thinking, wow is everyone as exhausted as I am this morning? Well maybe, yes (we’re all overscheduled these days!), but it might also depend on where you live.
In an effort to document sleep patterns across the nation, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have made the first-ever sleep map that includes data on sleep disturbance and daytime fatigue. They found that Southern states have the most sleep issues compared to the rest of the country.
The surprising correlation: The same states had high obesity rates as well, which suggests that an unhealthy lifestyle and poor sleep go hand in hand. The study looked at statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—spanning 36 states and 157,319 people. More research is needed to draw conclusions, but the ultimate goal is to figure out why the patterns are happening, so there can be more focus on treatment and prevention.
