As a rule of thumb, people should spend a third of their lives sleeping. The Mayo Clinic puts the number between 7 and 10 hours, to some extent depending on age. It also points out that there is good sleep and bad sleep. “If your sleep is frequently interrupted, you’re not getting quality sleep. The quality of your sleep is just as important as the quantity.”
The negative effects of sleep are not just being tired or listless. The National Health Institute has a long list of problems sleep quality and sleep duration can cause. Among them are difficulty making decisions, obesity, anxiety, and diabetes.
Nationwide, 35.2% of adults report not getting enough sleep. In some parts of the country, however, adults are far more likely than average to get the recommended minimum of seven hours of sleep per night.
Using data from County Health Rankings & Roadmaps, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute joint program, 24/7 Wall St. identified America’s the least sleep-deprived county. Counties and county equivalents are ranked by the share of adults not getting enough sleep — which ranges on this list from 25.6% to 29.3%.
To improve sleep habits, the CDC recommends developing a routine of going to bed at the same time each night and waking up at the same time every day. The CDC also advises regular exercise and avoiding caffeine, large meals, and alcohol before bedtime. Removing electronic devices, such as TVs and computers, from the bedroom can also help improve sleep habits.
The least sleep-deprived country in America is Summit County, Utah. Here are the details:
> Adults reporting insufficient sleep (<7 hours): 25.6% > Adults reporting poor or fair health: 10.9% — 16th lowest of 3,106 counties
> Avg. number of mentally unhealthy days reported in past month: 3.5 — 126th lowest of 3,106 counties
> Adult obesity rate: 23.4% — 5th lowest of 3,106 counties
> Adults with diabetes: 6.8% — 9th lowest of 3,106 counties
Methodology: To determine America’s least sleep-deprived county, 24/7 Wall St. reviewed the share of adults reporting fewer than seven hours of sleep on average from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute joint program’s 2021 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps report. While the CHR report is from 2021, insufficient sleep figures published in the report are from 2018.
Of the 3,220 counties or county-equivalents, 3,142 had boundaries that fell within one of the 50 states or the District of Columbia. Counties with a 2019 five-year population estimate from the U.S. Census Bureau of less than 1,000 were excluded.
The remaining 3,106 places were ranked based on the share of adults reporting insufficient sleep. Additional information on the share of adults reporting poor or fair health, the average number of mentally unhealthy days reported in the past 30 days, adults 20 years and older who report a body mass index of 30 kg/m2 or higher (adult obesity rate), and the share of adults 20 years and older with diagnosed diabetes are also from the 2021 CHR.
Click here to read America’s Least Sleep-Deprived Counties
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