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Sleep and Sex Life

Quality sleep is important for overall health. But, did you know that poor sleep can make you infertile over time? And it’s the case for both men and women. What’s more shocking is that erectile dysfunction is so common that almost 30 million men are affected by it in the U.S.

How do we know about this? Because we explored several studies to understand how sleep and sex life are related. Lowered sexual desire is one such negative effect that poor sleep can have. We have found even more shocking facts related to sleep and sex life.

Alora present’s Sleep and Sex Life: Report

In this report, Sleep and Sex Life, we have explored the intricate relationship between sleep and sexual well-being. In this comprehensive report, we have analysed various studies, trying to understand how sleep quality is connected to a vibrant sex life.

We have also talked about what poor sleep can do to your sexual health now and in the long run. Our objective is to present all these findings in a way that's interesting and also makes you take your nightly sleep more seriously.

After learning about these facts, we are more determined to help you to sleep better so you have a more satisfying and connected sex life!

What do sleep stats look like in the U.S.?

The recommended sleep hours are 7 to 8 hours each night. But does that really happen? Here’s how Americans are doing in their sleep habits.

About 1 in 3 adults get less than 7 hours of sleep every night.

Hawaii scored the highest, where 43% of the adults receive less than 7 hours of sleep every night.

Insomnia is 40% more prevalent in women than in men.

New York City is the last to go to bed and is also late to rise compared to other cities in the U.S.

Philadelphia ranks high in worst sleep health in the US.

The people in Phoenix get an average of 5 hours and 45 minutes of sleep every night, far less than the required sleep each night.

Do you get at least 7 hours of sleep each night?

Umm…not really

Yes

And what about sex life among Americans?

In the U.S., 25 to 29-year-olds are the most active sexually. Here are some facts on how Americans are doing in their sex life.

About 25% of American adults have weekly sex.

37% of individuals above the age of 50 do not have sex anymore.

Only 5% of Americans have sex four or more times a week.

25-29 year-old married couples in the U.S. scored a whopping 93.2% in intercourse rates.

About 29.35% of the Americans in 2021 reported having no sex in the past year.

California is the most sexually active city in the U.S.

How Poor Sleep Affects Sex Life?

Poor sleep can affect both mental and physical aspects of your sexual life. And it goes beyond just tiredness. Low sexual desire, erectile dysfunction and even infertility are some of the problematic effects poor sleep can have.

Sleep deprivation for a few days might not cause any serious sexual health issues, but you might feel a temporary decrease in sexual desire. In fact, sleep and sex life are so closely related that here’s what Dr Meir Krygr, MD, a Yale Medicine sleep specialist, has said about it,

“When encountering patients with sexual dysfunction, practitioners should consider the possibility of a sleep disorder, which can cause disrupted sleep,”

Here are some key findings on how poor sleep affects the sexual health of men and women:

Men

Many studies have been conducted to understand how poor sleep has affected men. The scenario is worse in case of male shift workers. Shift work is an enemy of your circadian rhythm, also known as our sleep-wake cycle. The most common difficulties faced by male shift workers are erectile dysfunction, testosterone deficiency (it’s a hormone found in a male that regulates sex drive and production of sperm) and even infertility.

Here are some key findings :

Poor sleep has been known to increase the chances of erectile dysfunction in men.

Erectile dysfunction affects about 30 million men in the U.S.

People with Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) have even higher chances of erectile dysfunction.

Shift workers, who work at night and sleep during the day, are also at a high risk of erectile dysfunction

About 72% of men suffering from sleep apnea have erectile dysfunction.

Sleeping too little and too much, both cause an increased risk of infertility in men.

Poor sleep is known to cause testosterone deficiency in men.

Some of the most common causes of erectile dysfunction in men are insomnia, sleep apnea and circadian rhythm disruption.

Are you a shift worker?

Yes.

No, but my partner is

Women

Similarly, female shift workers, mostly female nurses who work at night, are the ones who are worst affected by poor sleep. Some of the common problems seen in women are sexual dysfunction, lowered sexual arousal and even infertility.

Here are some key findings:

Sleep deprivation has caused decreased sexual arousal in women.

But another 2017 study, Subjective sleep quality, unstimulated sexual arousal, and sexual frequency. Sleep Science, found that short-term sleep deprivation increased sexual arousal in women.

Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA) has also caused sexual dysfunction in women.

Sexual desire increased by 14% in women when they got one hour of extra sleep than usual.

Poor sleep for prolonged periods can interfere with the menstrual cycle, hence affecting fertility in women.

In this 2023 study, Associated between sexual function in women and sleep quality, among women with sexual dysfunction, about 73.4% showed sleep disturbances.

Poor sleep quality is linked to worse orgasms and more sexual dissatisfaction in women.

Are you experiencing both poor sleep and an unsatisfied sex life?

Yes…

Why should I tell you?

Can improving sleep improve your sex life?

Yes. Sleep hygiene can improve your sex life to a great extent. Several studies have been conducted to analyse how improving sleep quality has also improved sex life in women. Good sleep is also known to improve mood and reduce stress. So, these can contribute towards a more improved sex life. More studies need to be conducted to find out how improving sleep can improve sex life in men as well.

Key findings on how improving sleep has improved sex life:

A 14% increase in sexual frequency was seen in women who had an additional hour of sleep each night.

In the same study, it was also found that women who got more sleep had an increased genital arousal.

Female nurses who did shift work showed improvements in sexual life quality when their sleep was improved for 3 months.

Do you want to improve your sleep?

Yes of course

I want to but I’m not able to.

What can you do to improve sleep?

Improving sleep involves cultivating healthy sleep hygiene and making certain lifestyle adjustments to have a restful night’s sleep. And we know that improving sleep has positive effects not just on your sex life but also on your overall health in the long run.

You can improve your sleep by creating a bedtime routine, establishing a consistent sleep schedule, limiting screen time, optimising your sleep environment, and watching your diet and exercise.

Want to know more about how you can build sleep hygiene? Check out this post!

But if you don’t want that now, you can always start small!

Can’t Sleep? We have a solution!

Getting a good night’s sleep every day might seem like a dream come true to many. With our fast-paced and “always online” lifestyle, it’s getting more and more difficult to go to bed at the right time and fall asleep quickly.

Building sleep hygiene doesn’t happen in a day. It’ll take you some time. But you can have a good night’s sleep today! Alora’s sleep app contains well-curated sleep sounds, guided meditations and bedtime stories to help you kick out stress and fall asleep fast!

Alora has got something for everyone. Our main goal is to help you sleep better so you can rock your day!

References

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26890214/

https://link.springer.com/article/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/

https://mayoclinic.elsevierpure.com/

https://www.smsna.org/patients/

https://academic.oup.com/jsm/

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