Lack of Awareness
Despite strong evidence of the relationship between insufficient sleep and health problems, most people are unaware of the amount of sleep they need, their level of sleep deprivation, and the negative impact of sleep deprivation on health. Because of lack of awareness, sleep is not commonly incorporated into public health approaches. In addition, many health care providers do not counsel their patients about healthy sleep habits. In a study of health care screening among 121 primary care clinics, only 43% included sleep-related questions on their screening batteries compared with 100% for smoking and alcohol, 93% for healthy eating, and 86% for physical activity. It is not clear why sleep is not included in health screenings, but it may be related to the clinician's lack of knowledge of the importance of sleep. In 2002, only 10% of primary care providers described their knowledge of sleep and sleep disorders as good.
Although little evidence exists on the effectiveness of sleep screening and counseling on sleep behavior, screening and counseling has been shown to improve the health behaviors of patients in other areas, such as dietary habits, smoking cessation, and physical activity. Therefore, giving providers information about screening and counseling for appropriate sleep time and needs could better equip primary care and public health professionals with the knowledge needed to screen and counsel patients to promote sleep as a healthy behavior. However, further investigation is needed on the effectiveness of sleep screening and sleep counseling.