Self-Reported Sleep Disturbance among African-American Elderly: The Effects of Depression, Health Status, Exercise, and Social Support

Abstract

The prevalence and correlates of self-reported difficulties in initiating and maintaining sleep were investigated for a sample of 998 Black elderly. In terms of prevalence, only 68.3 percent of this sample had no trouble falling asleep. Over 14.5 percent of men and 23.6 percent of women participants in this study reported sleep latencies exceeding thirty minutes. Almost 13 percent reported getting less than four hours of sleep at night. Moreover, 14.5 percent of participants wake up at least three times during a typical night's sleep other than to use the bathroom and 45.3 percent said when they wake up during the night, they remain awake at least thirty minutes before falling back to sleep. Compared to men, women reported longer sleep latency, waking up more frequently at night, and were more likely to visit a health practitioner for sleeping problems. Multivariate analysis indicates that self-reported sleep problems were significantly greater among Black elderly who were women, with a higher level of depression/anxiety, those with a higher number of chronic illnesses, those who did not exercise, and those who reported lower levels of emotional social support.