Philadelphia residents have the most trouble sleeping, according to a new study that ranked cities by “sleep health.”
The study was conducted by U.S. News and World Report in 2023.
Sleep matters - a lot. Not getting enough sleep can dramatically affect health.
According to the article, “Decline in sleep quality can lead to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, or any number of physical and mental health ailments. Sleeping on a comfortable mattress and following a healthy bedtime routine helps, but your sleep quality can depend on where you live.”
According to the study, things that can affect sleep health include heavy traffic, places with “manufacturing or energy or waste facilities,” high air pollution. The latter can “ lead to disordered breathing, which can cause snoring, and wheezing. This may contribute to shorter sleep duration,” the article says.
What factors were used to name Philadelphia the worst city for sleep? According to U.S. News and World Report, the study considered air pollution, light pollution, noise pollution, physical activity, and short sleep duration.
Air pollution was measured as “air quality measured by amounts of fine particulate matter of less than 2.5 micrometers that are suspended in the air for a 24-hour period (PM 2.5) by city in 2021.”
Light pollution was “adjusted for land areas within each city, measured in spectral radiance (nW/cm²/sr).”
Noise Pollution was defined as “road noise data, adjusted for land areas within each city, measured in adjusted decibels (dBA).”
Physical activity was defined as “overall prevalence of physical activity by state, as reported by the CDC.”
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