Chandigarh: Poor sleep quality is alarmingly widespread in Punjab and is significantly influenced by key socio-demographic factors, particularly age, education and place of residence, with older adults and rural residents emerging as the most vulnerable groups, according to a community-based study.The study, published in the European Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine, found that 66.5% of the participants were classified as having poor sleep quality, highlighting the scale of the problem across the adult population. The findings underline an urgent need for public health programmes to include sleep hygiene education and targeted interventions to address a growing but often overlooked health risk.Conducted between March and May 2025, the cross-sectional survey covered 400 adults aged 18 years and above from both urban and rural areas of Punjab, offering a broad snapshot of the state’s general population. Punjab’s rapid socio-economic and lifestyle transitions make such assessments critical, as sleep remains a fundamental physiological need essential for physical, emotional and cognitive health.The age profile of participants showed that 33% were aged between 26 and 35, followed by 28% in the 36–45 age group. Young adults aged 18–25 accounted for 19%, while those aged 46 and above formed 20% of the sample. Women constituted 52% of respondents, while men made up 48%. In terms of education, the largest segments had secondary school education (34%) or undergraduate qualifications (34.5%), while 4.5% had no formal education. Occupationally, participants included homemakers (22.0%), private sector employees (19.5%), students (18.0%), self-employed individuals (15.5%), govt employees (15.0%) and others (10.0%). A majority of respondents lived in rural areas (56.5%), compared to 43.5% in urban settings.While 67% of participants reported good subjective sleep quality and 76.5% said they did not rely on sleep medication, several objective indicators pointed to significant underlying problems. Nearly half of the respondents recorded poor scores for sleep disturbances (47%) and habitual sleep efficiency (44.5%), suggesting frequent interruptions and reduced effectiveness of sleep. Difficulties in falling asleep were reported by 41.5%, while 38% experienced daytime dysfunction, indicating impaired alertness and functioning during the day. The findings suggest many individuals may perceive their sleep as adequate even when measurable disturbances persist.Age showed a strong association with sleep quality. Adults aged 46 years and above recorded the highest prevalence of poor sleep at 81.6%. Gender was not found to be a statistically significant factor, although a higher proportion of women reported poor sleep (70.8%) compared to men (61.7%). Education displayed a clear relationship with sleep quality, with higher education linked to better sleep outcomes. For instance, 44.8% of postgraduates reported good sleep quality, compared with only 26.5% among those with secondary education.Occupation did not show a statistically significant association with sleep quality, although students and govt employees tended to report relatively better sleep than self-employed individuals and those in the ‘others’ category. Place of residence emerged as another important factor, with urban residents reporting better sleep quality (38.4%) than rural participants (29.8%). The data highlight the combined influence of social and environmental factors on sleep health.The study, ‘An Assessment of Sleep Quality and Its Socio-Demographic Correlates Among the General Population of Punjab: A Cross-Sectional Study’, was conducted by Gurkirat Singh, Harshpreet Singh, Virinder Singh Gill, Rohit Batish and Manvi Sagar.YOUNGSTERS SLEEPING BETTERAge group | Good Sleep (%) | Poor Sleep (%)18–25 | 53.8% | 46.2% 26–35 | 37.9% | 62.1% 36–45 | 24.6% | 75.4% 46 and above | 18.4% | 81.6%POSTGRADUATES SLEEP BESTEducation Level | Good Sleep (%) | Poor Sleep (%) No formal education | 37.5% | 62.5% Primary school | 29.2% | 70.8% Secondary school | 26.5% | 73.5% Undergraduate | 36.6% | 63.4% Postgraduate | 44.8% | 55.2%HOMEMAKERS ARE STRESSEDOccupation | Good Sleep (%) | Poor Sleep (%) Homemaker | 29.8% | 70.2% Student | 47.1% | 52.9% Govt Employee | 40.6% | 59.4% Private sector | 39.5% | 60.5% Self-employed | 20.7% | 79.3% Others | 15.0% | 85.0%CITIES SLEEP BETTERResidence | Good Sleep (%) | Poor Sleep (%) Urban | 38.4% | 61.6% Rural | 29.8% | 70.2% MSID:: 126451786 413 |
