Half of Spaniards Do Not Get Enough Sleep

Spaniards have harmful nighttime habits that largely explain why a significant number of citizens, more than ten million, regularly sleep poorly and insufficiently.

We steal hours from sleep almost daily for leisure and also go to bed after overusing electronic screens. This, along with other factors or personal disorders, explains why more than half of Spaniards, specifically 54%, admit that they usually sleep fewer hours than the seven that experts generally recommend as essential for a good rest. This is the main conclusion of the monographic study on sleep in Spain conducted by the pharmaceutical company Bayer.

Few hours are slept, and furthermore, 44% of those surveyed rate the quality of their sleep as poor. This percentage rises by four points, almost reaching half of those affected, if only women are consulted. By age, those who report more problems sleeping well are those in middle age, between 45 and 55 years old.

The effect of this regular lack of sleep is that those who suffer from it, then, during the day, in their workday or study schedule, are burdened by increased fatigue and drowsiness, repeated poor concentration, and ultimately, low performance in tasks that require intellectual effort. It is not scientific speculation; the respondents themselves confess it. 35% of the population acknowledges having low performance on days when they sleep poorly, and up to half have episodes of drowsiness in places like the cinema or the workplace due to insufficient rest.

Specialists emphasize that the study confirms that there are two deeply rooted harmful habits among Spaniards that are behind their sleep problems. The first is the widespread habit of staying up late. One in four citizens goes to bed almost daily after midnight, a proportion that rises to half if only weekends or holidays are considered. This behavior, practiced repeatedly, "can alter the natural rhythm of sleep and disrupt the circadian rhythm, which can lead to chronic problems such as insomnia and difficulty falling asleep at regular times," explains Inmaculada Ferreres, pharmacist and scientific advisor at Bayer.

The other bad habit, increasingly widespread, is watching television or series or using mobile phones or tablets before turning off the light. Up to eight out of ten Spaniards confess that they usually watch television just before going to bed, and half, either in parallel or exclusively, are glued to other electronic screens until the last minute, usually to their smartphone. Those who lose the most sleep hours with this habit are teenagers and young people. The regular use of electronic screens before sleeping has a direct relationship with difficulties in sleeping and having a good rest.

The results obtained by Bayer are very similar to those revealed by a previous study conducted by the Spanish Society of Neurology, which already disclosed that 48% of Spaniards do not have quality sleep, which is why a third of citizens wake up with the feeling of not having had a restorative sleep.