Santa's Not Getting Much Sleep This Holiday Season
As One Half (49%) of Americans Get 6 Hours or Less of Sleep The Night Before Gifts are Exchanged

New York, NY - Playing Santa is not for the well rested, according to a new Ipsos Public Affairs conducted on behalf of sleepbetter.org, as one half (49%) of Americans who celebrate Christmas get six hours or less of sleep the night before gifts are exchanged. In fact, 14% receive 5 hours or less sleep the night before the Christmas gift-exchange. The envy of the drowsy, 45% receive 7 to 8 hours of sleep, while 5% get more than 8 hours of sleep.

However, those with children in the household are more likely to get less sleep as two in three (66%) get less than seven hours sleep the night before Christmas, with 17% receiving fewer than 5 hours. Just three in ten (30%) receive 7 to 8 hours of sleep, while few (4%) slumber for more than 8 hours. Perhaps trying to catch a glimpse of mommy kissing Santa Claus, two in ten (19%) parents say that their children get 6 hours or less of sleep that night. But the anticipation of opening gifts isn't affecting others quite as much as 44% of parents say their children get 7 to 8 hours of sleep, and 34% get 9 or more hours.

The data reveal that many Americans use the Christmas vacation to sleep in more than usual, as 43% say they take advantage of the extra time off to sleep in more often. In fact, one quarter (22%) say they sleep better than usual over the Christmas vacation (even though many are deprived the night before the gift exchange). Interestingly, one in ten (9%) say they sleep worse over the Christmas holidays, citing family stress (23%), too many things to do (16%), or not being able to sleep in their own bed as the main reasons.

While gift-giving has become a central component of Christmas for many families, when asked what they most look forward to over the Christmas vacation, Americans were just as likely to mention sleep or rest (6%) as giving and receiving gifts (7%). But a vast majority (77%) of Americans said they most look forward spending time with their family over Christmas.

Two in ten (20%) Americans say that they take a nap on the day they gather with their friends and family, with 6% napping for over an hour. Others nap for 30 to 60 minutes (7%), while 6% typically only indulge in a cat-nap for less than a half-hour.

It's likely that many are taking advantage of more sleep over the Christmas holidays as a result of the fact that two in ten (17%) say they lose sleep as the holiday season approaches due to Christmas-induced stress. This stress could be further fueled by the worry over holiday spending, as one in three (35%) Americans say they are more worried (16% much more/19% somewhat more) about being able to afford gift-giving this year. Conversely, just 13% say they're worried less (9% much less/4% somewhat less) than last year, while 51% are no more or less worried than last year.

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted November 5 to 9, 2009. For the survey, a nationally representative sample of 1,001 randomly-selected adults was interviewed by telephone via Ipsos' U.S. Telephone Express omnibus. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate within 1773.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire population of adults in the U.S. been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/gender composition reflects that of the actual U.S. population according to data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Night Before Christmas...

One half (49%) of Americans get six hours or less of sleep the night before they exchange Christmas presents. But some are more likely than other to get less sleep:

• Americans aged 18 to 34 are most likely (58%) to get 6 hours or less of sleep, while those aged 35 to 54 (51%) and 55+ (39%) are less likely.
• Those in the Northeast (57%) are most likely to get less than 7 hours of sleep, followed by those living in the West (54%) and the South. Those in the Midwest are much less likely (36%) to only get less than 7 hours of sleep.
• Those who take a holiday nap are much more likely (59%) than those who don't (47%) to report having six hours of sleep or less the night before.
• Hispanic Americans (68%) are most likely to get less than 7 hours of sleep, followed by Black Americans (60%). White (45%) Americans are far less likely to get so little sleep.

Losing Sleep Over the Holidays...

Two in ten (17%) Americans say they typically lose sleep leading up to the holidays as a result of Christmas-induced stress:

• Women (21%) are more likely than men (13%) to say they lose sleep in the run-up to Christmas.
• Younger (22%) and middle-aged Americans (20%) are more likely than older Americans (9%) to say they lose sleep.
• Those with children (27%) are much more likely than those without (11%) to lose sleep due to Christmas-induced stress.
• Hispanic Americans (39%) are most likely to lose sleep over stress, while white (15%) and Black (5%) Americans are much less likely.

Napping on the Holidays...

Two in ten (20%) Americans say they typically take a nap on the day when they gather with friends and family to exchange gifts. But others are more prone to nodding off than others:

• Men (22%) are slightly more likely than women (18%) to take a nap.
• Younger Americans (31%) are most likely to take a nap, while middle-aged (18%) and older (12%) Americans are less likely.
• Those in the South (25%) are most likely to nap, followed by those in the Northeast (20%), West (17%) and Midwest (15%).
• Parents (23%) are more likely than those without children in the household (18%) to take a nap.
• Hispanic Americans (36%) and Blacks (34%) are most likely to take a nap, while White Americans (15%) are much less likely to take a nap on the day they gather with friends and family.

Affording the Holidays...

Two in ten (16%) Americans are much more worried than in previous years about being able to afford gift-giving.

• Women (20%) are more likely than men (12%) to be much more worried than previous years.
• Those with children (20%) are more likely than those without kids in the household (14%) to be much more worried than during previous years.

For more information on this news release, please contact: Sean Simpson Research Manager Ipsos Reid Public Affairs (416) 572-4474 [email protected]

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