Prevalence of insomnia and use of sleep aids among adults in Canada.

Objectives: To estimate the prevalence of insomnia and the use of sleep aids among Canadian adults.
Methods: Data were derived from a phone interview conducted (April to October 2023) with a stratified, population-based sample of 4037 adults (57.6 % females; mean age 50.6 ± 18.4; range 18-102 years old) living in Canada. Post-stratified survey weights were included in the analysis to ensure the representativity of the adult Canadian population.
Results: The prevalence estimate of insomnia disorder was 16.3 % (95 % CI 15.1-17.6), with higher rates in females (risk ratio [RR] 1.24, 95 % CI 1.06-1.45), Indigenous peoples (RR 1.77, 95 % CI 1.27-2.47), and individuals with poorer mental or physical health. Overall, 14.7 % of respondents reported having used prescribed sleep medications in the previous 12 months, 28.7 % used natural products or over-the-counter (OTC) sleep aids, 15.6 % used cannabis-derived products and 9.7 % used alcohol for sleep in the last 12 months. Higher proportions of females used prescribed medication (RR 1.79, 95 % CI 1.31-2.43) and natural products or OTC medication (RR 1.41, 95 % CI 1.16-1.71), while more males used cannabis (RR 1.33, 95 % CI 1.03-1.72) and alcohol (RR 1.67, 95 % CI 1.16-2.33) for sleep. Higher proportions of older adults (≥65 years) were taking prescribed medications, while more young adults (18-35 years) used natural products or OTC medications, cannabis, and alcohol as sleep aids.
Conclusions: Insomnia is a highly prevalent condition in Canada and there is widespread and increasing use of various medications and substances to cope with this health issue. These findings highlight the need for public health interventions to promote healthy sleep and for wider dissemination of evidence-based treatments for insomnia, such as cognitive behavioral therapy which is the first-line treatment for insomnia in practice guidelines, to reduce sleep health disparities.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests:Charles M. Morin reports financial support was provided by Canadian Institutes of Health Research. Charles M. Morin reports a relationship with Canadian Institutes of Health Research that includes: funding grants. Charles M. Morin reports a relationship with National Institutes of Health that includes: funding grants. Charles M. Morin reports a relationship with Eisai Inc that includes: funding grants. Charles M. Morin reports a relationship with Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd that includes: funding grants. Charles M. Morin reports a relationship with Lallemand Health Solution that includes: funding grants. Charles M. Morin reports a relationship with Haleon that includes:. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Canadian Institutes of Health Research that includes: funding grants. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada that includes: funding grants. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Weston Family Foundation that includes: funding grants. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Hypersomnia Foundation that includes: board membership and funding grants. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Jazz Pharmaceuticals that includes: consulting or advisory, funding grants, and speaking and lecture fees. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Paladin Labs Inc that includes: funding grants. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Eisai Inc that includes: board membership, consulting or advisory, and speaking and lecture fees. Thien Thanh Dang-Vu reports a relationship with Idorsia Pharmaceuticals Ltd that includes: board membership and consulting or advisory. Rebecca Robillard reports a relationship with Canadian Institutes of Health Research that includes: funding grants. Rebecca Robillard reports a relationship with Veterans Affairs Canada that includes: funding grants. Rebecca Robillard reports a relationship with Boehringer Ingelheim Canada Ltd that includes: speaking and lecture fees. Rebecca Robillard reports a relationship with Canadian Sleep Research Consortium that includes: board membership. Rebecca Robillard reports a relationship with Canadian Sleep Society that includes: board membership. Charles M. Morin has patent with royalties paid to Mapi Research Trust. Co-author reports payment from Wellcome Foundation - Rebecca Robillard. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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