A Study on Sleep-Pattern and Sleep Hygiene Behaviors Among School Going Adolescents in Semi Urban Coimbatore

Abstract

Background: Sleep plays an important role in our life. Adolescents undergo several changes with puberty and have a preference for later bedtimes due to internet usage. Evidence shows that many adolescents are not obtaining the required amounts of sleep (8-10 hours) due to inadequate sleep practices. The objectives of this research were to study sleep-pattern among adolescents in Semi urban Coimbatore and also to determine the sleep hygiene practices among the adolescents Methodology: This study is a school based cross-sectional study. A total of 300 adolescents from class VIII to XIIth were selected using simple random sampling. Data was collected from February to May 2018. A structured questionnaire for sleep pattern and Sleep Hygiene Index was used. Results: The adolescents’ mean sleep duration was 7.49 ± 1.12 hours on weekdays and 9.32 ± 1.55 hours on weekends. Mean Sleep Pattern Index (SPI) score was 22.48±6.9 and Mean Sleep Hygiene Index (SHI) score was 17.51±6.3 in our study. Conclusions: Majority of the adolescents had moderate scores of sleep pattern and sleep hygiene practices. Interventions directed towards promoting good sleep hygiene strategies are required to improve the physical and emotional health of adolescents.