Shutdown might be increasing shut-eye

Since the stay-at-home orders began, some speculate that America has been sleeping better.

A new study announced this month by sleep industry information site Sleepopolis ranks cities across the U.S. for quality of sleep. Examining metrics such as population density, income, employment, food insecurity, obesity, alcohol use, smoking, and other influential health factors, the study ranked cities within each state in its report “Best Cities for Sleep 2020.”

While the state with the most high-ranking cities for good sleep was California (which also had the top four cities nationwide), that’s probably not a helpful comparison for smaller-population states such as Idaho with fewer cities to rank.

One category of particular interest was air quality, typically impacted by vehicle and industrial emissions associated with bigger populations such as, ironically, California. Generally, the best-ranked cities have minimal air pollution. Poor air quality correlates with sleep-interrupters such as allergies, asthma, and sleep apnea.

According to the report, 28 percent of Idaho’s adults report insufficient sleep. Insufficient sleep has been associated in prior research with weight gain, cognitive problems, and cardiovascular disease, as well as certain kinds of cancer.

So why are people generally getting more sleep during this time of social isolation? That’s resulted in staying home more, perhaps getting to bed earlier, and highlights a benefit of working remotely, say the researchers.

In Idaho, Eagle emerged in first place as the most conducive to sleep, while Emmett came in last.

In North Idaho, Hayden ranks highest for sleep among our state’s 33 cities examined — at No. 8. Rathdrum and Post Falls also made the top third, while Coeur d’Alene and Sandpoint fell closer to the halfway mark. No other cities in Idaho’s five northernmost counties were listed.

More specifically, despite the difference in ranking nearly all categories measured, including health, air quality, and poverty-related factors, for the four cities in Kootenai County were exactly the same. The only differences were in population and median income:

Hayden: No. 8 (Population: 15,166; median income: $57,355)

Rathdrum: 10 (Population: 8,704; median income: $53,024)

Post Falls: 11 (Population: 34,691; median income: $50,683)

Coeur d’Alene: 14 (Population: 51,303; median income: $47,606)

Sandpoint is where it gets a bit more interesting, with a lower overall score despite being geographically close to higher-population Hayden, which ranked twice as high.

Comparing Sandpoint — No. 17 (Population 8,703; median income $36,706) — to the four Kootenai County cities, Sandpoint actually had slightly better scores in mental and physical health, alcohol and smoking rates, as well as slightly better air quality.

Where Sandpoint scored lower than Kootenai was insufficient sleep, obesity, unemployment, and food insecurity (all linked by other research with markedly lower income).

“I finally got eight hours of sleep. It took me four days, but whatever.” (unknown).

For more information see Sleepopolis.com/sleep-cities.

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Sholeh Patrick is a columnist with the Hagadone News Network who wishes she was getting more sleep. Contact her at Sholeh@cdapress.com.