For Young Workers, Insomnia Accounts for Four Weeks of Lost Productivity a Year

For the study, researchers analyzed data from 554 22-year-old Australian workers who had undergone sleep disorder screening as part of the study. The screenings were completed in a sleep lab and combined with work performance questionnaires. 

Sleep disorders were diagnosed in 21.7% of the workers. Insomnia was the most common issue, with 17% of the young adult workers diagnosed. Another 5.4% were diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea, and 0.4% with restless leg syndrome. The scientists found that workers with sleep disorders were 40 percent less productive than their peers who did not have a sleep disorder.

“This is equivalent to total workplace productivity loss (followed up on multiple occasions across 12 months) of about four weeks for young people with clinically significant sleep disorders, compared with less than one week for those without,” says Flinders University Associate Professor in Clinical Sleep Health Amy Reynolds, Ph.D., who led the study.

This loss of productivity was due to what Reynolds calls “presenteeism.” Workers show up to their jobs but simply can’t work to their full capacity or potential. This is significant since previous research with the same study group found that one in five workers had a sleep disorder – most of whom had no idea of their diagnosis until after they participated in a sleep study Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source .

Insomnia is a common but underrecognized problem that can impact a person’s work performance by affecting memory, learning and concentration. The results can be costly. One study estimates the annual cost of U.S. workplace errors and accidents linked to insomnia at $31.1 billion Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source .   

The fix for this issue in young workers, researchers say, is tailored interventions that will help identify and manage sleep disorders like insomnia. Primary care doctors and occupational health providers could assist with this process by screening young adults for insomnia and offering individualized treatment. Given the fact that sleep disorders are more common as people age – about 43 percent of people aged 45 to 65 have a sleep disorder Trusted Source National Library of Medicine, Biotech Information The National Center for Biotechnology Information advances science and health by providing access to biomedical and genomic information. View Source – early diagnosis could benefit productivity, safety, and wellbeing, according to the study.