Cohort study, 2015
Does sleep get worse before your period?
Yes. Sleep efficiency dropped by 5% and total sleep time was 25 minutes less in the week before the period compared with the week before that.
What they did
A community study tracked sleep using wrist actigraphy (a sensor worn on the wrist that measures movement and sleep) in 163 women with an average age of 51.5 years across their menstrual cycles.
What they found
Sleep efficiency declined gradually across the entire menstrual cycle, with a pronounced decline in the fourth week (the premenstrual period). Compared with the third week, sleep efficiency declined by 5% (P < 0.0001) and total sleep time was 25 minutes less (P = 0.0002) in the fourth week. Sleep in the second and third weeks did not differ significantly.
What it means for you
Sleep gets meaningfully worse in the week before your period. Lifestyle factors like body weight, financial stress, marital status, and smoking also affected sleep changes, suggesting these factors may be important to address.
163
women studied
5%
decline in sleep efficiency week 4
25 minutes
less total sleep time week 4
About the study
- Original title
- Actigraphy-defined measures of sleep and movement across the menstrual cycle in midlife menstruating women: Study of Women's Health Across the Nation Sleep Study
- Authors
- Zheng H, Harlow SD, Kravitz HM et al.
- Journal
- Menopause (New York, N.Y.)
- Year
- 2015
- Study design
- Cohort study
- What was tested
- None (observation only)
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1097/gme.0000000000000249
Topics
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