It’s no surprise that sleep is the number one thing WSC students look forward to at the end of a long day. Sleep is an essential element humans need to have a healthy and stable lifestyle.
According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, the average adult is recommended to obtain seven or more hours of sleep per night. By doing this, adults will lessen the risk of health problems and promote healthy sleeping habits.
However, keeping and establishing a healthy sleeping routine can be difficult when it comes to college students. Students at WSC were given a simple survey to question sleeping routines and habits they have adopted during their college careers.
This survey questioned their sleeping hours, if they are staying up all night, difficulties sleeping and use of a sleeping aid to help establish a solid sleeping habit.
On average, 44% of students said they sleep less than the recommended sleeping hours as stated by the AASM. Additionally, 44% of students said they have difficulties sleeping and 55% use a sleeping aid to fall asleep.
Despite this, over 80% of surveyed students said they do not stay up all night long. The other 20% was split evenly down the middle, as 10% stated they stay up only on the weekends and for entertainment purposes and the other 10% stated they stay up with the exception of having a quiz or exam the following day.
While this reflects a small group of students at WSC, a similar survey titled “Determinants of unhealthy sleeping habits among Belgian university students: an application of the Theory of Planned Behavior” did a more detailed analysis. The survey tested multiple variables pertaining to the students themselves and their sleeping habits.
Their results varied, as they found that 70% of 1006 students who completed the survey were female. This aligns closely with WSC, which has a 60% female student population according to the official WSC website. Many of these women reportedly knew their sleeping habits and took naps to regulate themselves when lacking sleep at night. It was also found males participating in the survey had a higher screen time average of about 2.37 more than female participants.
“My bad habit I have is when I don’t have exams, I’ll stay up until 1am and wake up at 7:45am, just so I can feel me waking up early and then I go back to sleep,” said Nicholas Jimenez, a second year biology major.
