Want To Sleep Better, Find A Good Mate

Want To Sleep Better, Find A Good Mate

 Women's Sleep Habits Linked to Love

In unsurprising news, women in bad relationships have a poorer quality of sleep. Of course, maybe all these women date men who snore. A study conducted by Wendy M. Troxel, PhD from the Department of Psychiatry¹ at the University of Pittsburgh, and colleagues, showed quality of sleep for women is associated with the stability of their romantic relationships. Women currently experiencing insecurity in their relationships may notice a negative change in their sleeping habits.

The study consisted of 370 mid-life women from Chicago, IL, Detroit, MI, Pittsburgh, PA and Oakland, CA: the women self-identified themselves as Caucasian (46%), African American (38%) and Chinese (16%).  All of the participants were previously² involved in an 8-year longitudinal study program called SWAN, Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation. Troxel used the data collected from SWAN to track the relationship status change of the participants over the course of eight years. The sleep study was conducted over a 35-day period in the participants’ homes, following their usual sleep schedules. Troxel utilized³ sleep monitoring equipment to measure the patients’ length of continuous sleep, interrupted sleep, length of different stages of sleep, and body movements. Along with the recorded evidence, the participants completed sleep diaries for the entire duration of the study. The participants also completed surveys that contained questions concerning their financial strain, BMI (Body Mass Index), depressive state, menopausal status, and sleep medication use.

The study analysis was separated into two parts: the first analysis examined the association between relationship status and sleep habits and the second analysis examined the association between relationship transition and sleep habits. For the first analysis, the women were placed into two categories based on the reports from the most previous SWAN interview: if the women were married or living as married for the duration of SWAN, they were categorized as “married” and if the women were single, separated, divorced, or widowed they were categorized as “unmarried”. The results showed that unmarried women experienced more interrupted sleep than married women. However, after the information from the surveys were considered, the differences between married and unmarried women were insignificant⁴; this means that the variation in sleep quality previously seen between the two groups was actually affected⁵ by those factors, not relationship status.

For the second analysis, the women were placed into four categories: women who were married during the entire duration of SWAN were categorized as “consistently married”, women who were single, separated, divorced, or widowed were categorized as “consistently unmarried”, women who started a relationship were categorized as “gained a partner”, and women who ended a relationship were categorized as “lost a partner”.  The results showed that the “lost a partner” and “consistently unmarried” participants had significantly worse sleep quality than the” consistently married” participants.

The results of Troxel’s study suggest relationship transition and quality influence sleep habits more than relationship status.  In another study, happily married women showed less anxiety than single women and women in poor relationships, with the reasoning that a successful marriage encourages a sense of emotional and financial stability.  Woman are purported⁶ to be more psychologically and physiologically⁷ affected by relationships than men. So, it is sufficient to say that single women and women in bad relationships experience poorer sleep due to the negative emotional effects of consistent or forthcoming instability. Of course, these effects do not have to turn into permanent conditions.

If you are going through a divorce, separation, or previously widowed and suffer from poor sleep quality, see a doctor or counselor⁸ for possible remedies.

1 psychiatry   

n.精神病学，精神病疗法

参考例句：

• The study appeared in the Amercian science Journal of Psychiatry.这个研究发表在美国精神病学的杂志上。
• A physician is someone who specializes in psychiatry.精神病专家是专门从事精神病治疗的人。

2 previously   

adv.以前，先前（地）

参考例句：

• The bicycle tyre blew out at a previously damaged point.自行车胎在以前损坏过的地方又爆开了。
• Let me digress for a moment and explain what had happened previously.让我岔开一会儿，解释原先发生了什么。

3 utilized   

v.利用，使用( utilize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• In the19th century waterpower was widely utilized to generate electricity. 在19世纪人们大规模使用水力来发电。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The empty building can be utilized for city storage. 可以利用那栋空建筑物作城市的仓库。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 insignificant   

adj.无关紧要的，可忽略的，无意义的

参考例句：

• In winter the effect was found to be insignificant.在冬季，这种作用是不明显的。
• This problem was insignificant compared to others she faced.这一问题与她面临的其他问题比较起来算不得什么。

5 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

6 purported   

adj.传说的，谣传的v.声称是…，（装得）像是…的样子( purport的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• the scene of the purported crime 传闻中的罪案发生地点
• The film purported to represent the lives of ordinary people. 这部影片声称旨在表现普通人的生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 physiologically   

ad.生理上，在生理学上

参考例句：

• Therefore, the liver and gallbladder cannot be completely separated physiologically and pathologically. 因此，肝胆在生理和病理上不能完全分离。
• Therefore, the liver and gallbladder are closely related physiologically and pathologically. 因此，肝胆在生理和病理上紧密联系。

8 counselor   

n.顾问，法律顾问

参考例句：

• The counselor gave us some disinterested advice.顾问给了我们一些无私的忠告。
• Chinese commercial counselor's office in foreign countries.中国驻国外商务参赞处。