Hormones

Hormones play a pivotal role in sleep regulation. Women experience monthly hormonal changes that can disrupt their circadian rhythms and increase their need for sleep. Our temperature increases slightly in the run-up to ovulation, and when that happens, sleep can be disrupted. “A drop in core temperature is an important part of the process the body goes through to fall asleep,” explains Wilson. “Women can also find their stress threshold diminishes at certain points in their cycle, making it harder to fall asleep and sustain sleep.”

A new review of research published in Sleep Medicine Reviews found that women rate their sleep quality lower than men’s and report more fluctuations in their quality of sleep, corresponding to changes throughout the menstrual cycle.

Interestingly, the review also found that women’s circadian periods are shorter than men’s by around six minutes. That might not sound like a lot but it means the misalignment between our central body clock and sleep/wake cycle is roughly five times larger in women than men. The review’s author, Dr Renske Lok from Stanford University, asks us to imagine wearing a watch that consistently ran six minutes faster or slower. Over time, that difference would start to cause brain fog, low mood and sleep issues.

And, of course, huge hormonal changes like pregnancy and menopause come with their own sleep challenges.

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