J Korean Med Sci.  2016 Nov;31(11):1689-1695. 10.3346/jkms.2016.31.11.1689.

Gender Differences in Sleep Disturbance among Elderly Koreans: Hallym Aging Study

• Quan SA
• Li YC
• Li WJ
• Li Y
• Jeong JY
• Kim DH

• KMID: 2470262
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.3346/jkms.2016.31.11.1689

Abstract

Sleep is an important component in our lives as it is necessary throughout one's entire life span. This study was conducted to elucidate whether there are gender differences in sleep quality and what factors can affect sleep quality in community-dwelling elderly Koreans. A total of 382 subjects (175 males and 207 females) were recruited among elderly aged 45 or over who participated in the 2010 Hallym Aging Study (HAS). They were invited to a general hospital and were evaluated for socioeconomic status, smoking history, and various clinical measures. Sleep quality was assessed by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). A higher score indicates poorer subjective sleep quality, (PSQI global score > 5 suggests sleep disturbance). After adjusting for potential covariates, our results show that alcohol increases the odds for poor sleep (odds ratio [OR] = 3.35, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.11-10.10) in males. In females, lack of exercise was the major risk factor of poor sleep as they are 4.46 times more likely to suffer from low sleep quality than those who exercise regularly (95% CI=1.56-13.75). Stress was also a risk factor for poor sleep. It was 5.60 times higher in the "always have stress" group than the "do not have stress" group (95% CI = 1.54-20.34). Thus, alcohol consumption is associated with men's sleep quality, while exercise and stress level affect women's.

Keyword

Gender Difference; Sleep Disturbance; Elderly; Korean; Alcohol; Exercise

MeSH Terms

Aged
Aged, 80 and over
*Aging
Asian Continental Ancestry Group
Depression/complications
Drinking
Exercise
Female
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Odds Ratio
Republic of Korea
Risk Factors
Sex Characteristics
Sleep Wake Disorders/complications/*pathology
Smoking
Social Class
Stress, Psychological
Surveys and Questionnaires

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