People lose sleep over a lot of different things, from relationships to COVID-19. Even the slow start of the Vancouver Canucks is keeping some people awake these days.
Add money woes to that list, according to a new Research Co. poll.
The poll results show that a whopping 50 per cent of those Canadians asked said they are finding it harder to rest every night because of financial anxiety. The results are up seven points since a similar poll conducted in May 2021, according to Research Co.
Health Canada says people should be sleeping between seven and nine hours a night, but nearly two-thirds of Canadians (64 per cent) are sleeping fewer than seven hours on a typical weekday or workday.
Only 35 per cent of Canadians say they are sleeping anywhere from seven to nine hours on a typical weekday or workday, said Research Co. But in B.C., that number dropped to just 28 per cent.
Part of the financial anxiety is connected to employment concerns, especially in younger people.
“Two-in-five Canadians aged 18-to-34 are losing sleep because of employment concerns,” said Mario Canseco, president of Research Co., in a news release. “Fewer Canadians aged 35-to-54 (33 per cent) and aged 55 and over (14 per cent) share the same experience.”
Health Canada guidelines recommend sleeping from 7 to 9 hours a night. Almost two thirds of Canadians (64%, +4 since 2021) are sleeping fewer than seven hours on a typical weekday or workday.https://t.co/hzt7YJ5APE
— Mario Canseco (@mario_canseco) November 25, 2022
The news has been filled lately with concerns about a looming worldwide recession, plus companies such as Facebook and Twitter laying off thousands of workers.
One-third of Canadians say concerns about relationships and family (33 per cent) and health (also 33 per cent) make it more difficult for them to fall asleep at night, said Canseco. Fewer Canadians lost sleep over work (28 per cent), Canadian politics and issues (10 per cent) and international politics and issues (10 per cent) over the past four weeks.
One-in-four Canadians (25 per cent) claim to “never” find it hard to fall asleep at night on an average week.
Results are based on an online study conducted from Nov. 18 to 20 among 1,000 adults in Canada.
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