Health

The top 5 worries — and 5 worst sleep habits — that are keeping Americans up at night

Published

2 days ago

September 25, 2024

Press Room

The top 5 worries — and 5 worst sleep habits — that are keeping Americans up at night

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One in five polled Americans say they “rarely or never” wake up feeling well-rested — and a new survey has identified the factors keeping sleep at bay.

Stress in general was labeled as the biggest culprit, negatively impacting 74% of Americans’ sleep routines, according to the survey by U.S. News & World Report.

“More specifically, we gathered data on the bedtime worries keeping Americans awake at night,” Julia Forbes, sleep editor at U.S. News 360 Reviews, told Fox News Digital.

BEST AND WORST BEDTIMES FOR VARIOUS GENERATIONS

Based on the survey of 1,200 American adults, these were the biggest concerns that kept Americans from drifting off in 2023.

One in five polled Americans say they “rarely or never” wake up feeling well-rested — and a new survey has identified the factors keeping sleep at bay. (iStock)

Top 5 worries at bedtime

1. Inflation

2. COVID-19

3. Gun violence in America

4. Climate change

5. 2024 Presidential election

The 2023 list of worries was almost identical to 2022, with the Russia-Ukraine war taking the last spot.

The cost of living woes are not surprising, according to Jonathan Alpert, a psychotherapist in Manhattan and Washington, D.C., and author of the book “Be Fearless: Change Your Life in 28 Days.”

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“This is often top of mind for people, including many of my patients,” Alpert, who was not involved in the survey, told Fox News Digital.

“As the prices of goods and services continue to increase, so do people’s worries about making ends meet.”

Stress in general was labeled as the biggest culprit, negatively impacting 74% of Americans’ sleep routines. (iStock)

The psychotherapist also commented on climate change making the list.

“People who worry about climate, some might argue, don’t have more pressing concerns, such as how to pay their bills or if their child might be involved in a school shooting,” Alpert said.

“As the prices of goods and services continue to increase, so do people’s worries about making ends meet.”

“My guess is that the climate change worriers might inhabit more blue than red states, and politics is at play here.”

Dr. Chris Mosunic, chief clinical officer at Calm in San Francisco, said it’s “no surprise” that the election is one of the top worries keeping Americans up at night.

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“When it comes to getting a good night’s rest, especially in moments of heightened anxiety like the election, practicing healthy habits is crucial to winding down at night,” he told Fox News Digital.

Alpert agreed that the election continues to be a source of stress for his patients, as they have a difficult time shutting it off at night.

Going to bed at inconsistent times was the top worst sleep habit impacting people’s slumber, the survey found. (iStock)

In addition to racing thoughts, certain habits and activities can make it more difficult to get the optimal quality and quantity of sleep.

Top 5 worst sleep habits

1. Going to bed at different times

2. Viewing screens in bed

3. Eating too much before bed

4. Falling asleep with the TV on

5. Pulling all-nighters

Dr. Chris Winter, a neurologist and sleep medicine specialist with Mattress Firm in Houston, Texas, said that inconsistent schedules has a rightful spot at the top of the list.

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“More and more research is coming out that shows even when sleep quality is sound and sleep amounts are adequate, inconsistency of sleep timing can lead to a large range of negative health consequences — heart disease, weight gain, cognitive decline and even cancer,” Winter, who also was not involved in the survey, told Fox News Digital.

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Nearly 90% of adults and 75% of children keep at least one electronic device in their bedrooms, according to a poll taken by the National Sleep Foundation. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)

The screen time issue is easily solved, he noted — “just leave your phone in the kitchen.”

Nearly 90% of adults and 75% of children keep at least one electronic device in their bedrooms, according to a poll taken by the National Sleep Foundation (NSF).

“Inconsistency of sleep timing can lead to a large range of negative health consequences.”

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Staying up all night deserves to be higher on the list, according to Winter.

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“It’s a terrible situation to be in from a sleep, health and safety perspective,” he said.

The general recommendation is for adults between 18 and 64 years of age to get between seven and nine hours of sleep per night, according to the NSF.

Health

In the Weight Loss War, Eating Bean & Veggie Soups May Be More Effective Than Keto

Published

8 hours ago

September 26, 2024

Press Room

In the Weight Loss War, Eating Bean & Veggie Soups May Be More Effective Than Keto

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Health

Federal judge orders EPA further regulate fluoride in drinking water due to concerns over lowered IQ in kids

Published

9 hours ago

September 26, 2024

Press Room

Federal judge orders EPA further regulate fluoride in drinking water due to concerns over lowered IQ in kids

It has been added to municipal water for decades, but a federal judge in California has ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to further regulate fluoride because high levels could pose “an unreasonable risk” to the intellectual development of children.

U.S. District Judge Edward Chen ruled Tuesday that the scientific evidence of fluoride’s health risks when ingested at current prescribed levels requires stricter regulation under the 2016 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The act provides a legal pathway for citizens to petition the EPA to consider whether an industrial chemical presents health risks.

Chen, in his 80-page ruling, wrote there is “little dispute” over whether fluoride is hazardous and ordered the EPA to take steps to lower that risk, but didn’t say what those measures should be.

“Indeed, EPA’s own expert agrees that fluoride is hazardous at some level of exposure,” the judge said. “And ample evidence establishes that a mother’s exposure to fluoride during pregnancy is associated with IQ decrements in her offspring.”

FLUORIDE IN WATER LINKED TO LOWER INTELLIGENCE

A drop of water drips from a leaky faucet. (iStock)

“Between 1981 and 1984, fluoride’s association with adverse effects including osteosclerosis, enamel fluorosis, and psychological and behavioral problems was contested,” Chen said.

At the same time, he wrote that the court’s finding “does not conclude with certainty that fluoridated water is injurious to public health,” Chen said. “Rather, as required by the Amended TSCA, the Court finds there is an unreasonable risk of such injury, a risk sufficient to require the EPA to engage with a regulatory response.

“This order does not dictate precisely what that response must be. Amended TSCA leaves that decision in the first instance to the EPA. One thing the EPA cannot do, however, in the face of this Court’s finding, is to ignore that risk,” Chen added.

“If the Court finds anew that the chemical at issue presents an unreasonable risk, it then orders the EPA to engage in rulemaking regarding the chemical,” the judge said. “The EPA is afforded in the first instance the authority to respond; regulatory actions can range from requiring a mere warning label to banning the chemical.”

An EPA spokesperson, Jeff Landis, told The Associated Press that the agency was reviewing the decision but offered no further comment.

It’s the first time a federal judge has made a determination about the neurodevelopmental risks to children of the recommended U.S. water fluoride level, said Ashley Malin, a University of Florida researcher who has studied the effect of higher fluoride levels in pregnant women.

She called it “the most historic ruling in the U.S. fluoridation debate that we’ve ever seen.”

Currently, more than 200 million Americans, or about 75 percent of the population, drink fluoridated water.

Close-up view of open toothpaste tube, cap and tooth brush in front of a blue backdrop.

Fluoride is added to many brands of toothpaste (iStock)

DOES FLUORIDE IN DRINKING WATER HURT YOUR BRAIN?

In 1950, federal officials endorsed water fluoridation to prevent tooth decay, and they continued to promote it even after fluoride toothpaste brands hit the market several years later. In 1945, Grand Rapids, Michigan became the first city in the world to fluoridate its water supply.

Critics have long said that washing teeth with fluoride is not comparable to the risks posed by ingesting fluoride, with the latter potentially triggering harmful neurotoxic effects.

Since 2015, federal health officials have recommended a fluoridation level of 0.7 milligrams per liter of water. For five decades before that, the recommended upper range was 1.2 “after evidence increasingly established fluoride’s connection to adverse effects, including severe enamel fluorosis, risk of bone fracture, and potential skeletal fluorosis,” the judge wrote. Skeletal fluorosis is a potentially crippling disorder which causes weaker bones, stiffness and pain.

The World Health Organization has set a safe limit for fluoride in drinking water of 1.5. Separately, the EPA has a longstanding requirement that water systems cannot have more than 4 milligrams of fluoride per liter of water.

The case was brought by Food and Water Watch, an advocacy organization which petitioned the EPA to investigate lowered IQs in children allegedly caused by fluoride. The EPA denied the group’s 2016 petition calling for the agency to ban or limit the fluoridation of drinking water.

Food & Water Watch and several co-petitioners subsequently sued the EPA to compel action citing the mounting scientific evidence of toxicity when fluoride is ingested.

“Today’s ruling represents an important acknowledgment of a large and growing body of science indicating serious human health risks associated with fluoridated drinking water,” the group said in a statement.

A water utility foreman at a plant where fluoride is added to the drinking water in Healdsburg, California. (Michael Macor/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)

“This court looked at the science and acted accordingly. Now the EPA must respond by implementing new regulations that adequately protect all Americans – especially our most vulnerable infants and children – from this known health threat.”

Tuesday’s ruling cited a review of 72 human epidemiological studies and available literature by the U.S. National Toxicology Program which concluded that fluoride is connected to reduced IQ in children.

“Notwithstanding recognition by EPA’s expert that fluoride is hazardous, the EPA points to technicalities at various steps of the risk evaluation to conclude that fluoride does not present an unreasonable risk,” Chen said. “Primarily, the EPA argues the hazard level and the precise relationship between dosage and response at lower exposure levels are not entirely clear. These arguments are not persuasive.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

READ THE RULING BELOW — APP USERS CLICK HERE:

Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business.

You can send tips to michael.dorgan@fox.com and follow him on Twitter @M_Dorgan.

Health

Mom issues warning after health scare, plus 'therapy ponies' and a new COVID strain

Published

20 hours ago

September 26, 2024

Press Room

Mom issues warning after health scare, plus 'therapy ponies' and a new COVID strain

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