Women in Germany sleep worse than men. This is one of the conclusions reached by the authors of the OnePoll poll by the Public Opinion Research Institute, commissioned by the hotel company Premier Inn Germany.
Family quarrels and troubles at work deprive Germans of sleep
Women find themselves in bed later, toss and turn longer and cannot fall asleep, and suffer more often from nightmares. Family quarrels affect women more than men: 55 percent of women said they sleep worse after conflict situations with loved ones, among men this figure is 30 percent. Problems at work prevent 44% of women and 28% of men from sleeping. As for the disturbing news about world events, they keep 26% of women and 17% of men from falling asleep. The ratio changes when it comes to football: when their favorite club is defeated, men sleep worse – 9%, and only 3% of female fans sleep worse due to football results.
The study was conducted online: 4,000 adults across Germany were interviewed between May 27 and June 22, 2022. According to the study, the quality of sleep is also affected by the region of residence in Germany. In addition, various social criteria were used as the basis for selecting participants.
Women are more likely to get cold and take sleeping pills more often
Women are more likely than men to get cold in bed: 19 percent of women and 5 percent of men go to bed with a heating pad on cold nights. Women like it cozy, quiet and dark at night, so they are more likely than men to use earplugs and sleep glasses, and sleep in socks.
In addition, women are more disciplined in their efforts to improve the quality of their sleep, whether it be an evening walk, bedtime reading, or a fixed bedtime. If all this fails, then 15 percent of women (and 9 percent of men) take sleeping pills.
Arguments in the bedroom and snoring partners
Many couples enjoy falling asleep together, while others find it difficult to sleep comfortably in the same bed. A quarter of respondents are concerned about snoring partners.
Disputes also interfere with restful sleep. What is most often argued about in German bedrooms? According to the survey, couples argue about windows open or closed at night (29 percent nationwide, highest in Saxony: 41 percent), room temperature (highest at 30 percent in Lower Saxony) or lights on (21 percent). – nationally, 30 percent – in the federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate).
Many respondents are also annoyed that their partner is trying to fall asleep with a mobile phone or tablet in hand, watching TV or taking up too much space in bed. Every seventh couple falls asleep in a bad mood, because only one of the partners wants sex. The smallest disagreements in intimate terms are in Bremen: only eight percent of the respondents mentioned her there.
The bigger the financial pillow, the better you sleep on it
Finance also has a significant impact on sleep. 22 percent of respondents with a monthly income (after tax) of less than 2,000 euros said they had difficulty falling asleep. This indicator decreased as income increased: for example, among those surveyed who receive “clean” from 2,000 to 3,000 euros per month, only 15 percent fall asleep badly.