Exploring relationship of poor sleeping habits with prenatal stress among pregnant women in Pakistan: a cross-sectional study

BMC Res Notes. 2024 Apr 19;17(1):110. doi: 10.1186/s13104-024-06756-1.

Abstract

Objective: Pregnancy is a complex phenomenon accompanied by biological, physiological and psychosocial changes for a mother. It is also regarded as a stressful life event where a woman's role, identity and interpersonal relationships are restructured. The present study from Pakistan explores the association of sleep quality and poor sleeping habits with prenatal stress using Pittsburgh Sleep quality Index.

Results: There were a total of 516 women (mean age = 29.82 years), with more than half reporting poor sleep quality. Ethnically, a majority (395, 76.6%) were natives of the Punjab province while rest were non-natives. A high percentage of respondents reported poor subjective sleep quality (22.1%), sleep latency (44.1%), habitual sleep efficiency (27.5%), sleep disturbance (30.1%), use of medications (7.1%) and daytime dysfunction (29.5%). According to logistic regression analysis, respondents with poor sleep quality were 2.24 (95% CI = 1.55-3.22, P < 0.001) times more likely to have high stress levels (P < 0.001).

Keywords: Exercise; PSQI; Pakistan; Pregnancy; Sleep; Stress; Unplanned pregnancy.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cross-Sectional Studies
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Mothers
  • Pakistan / epidemiology
  • Pregnancy
  • Pregnant Women
  • Sleep
  • Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders*
  • Sleep Wake Disorders* / epidemiology
  • Sleep Wake Disorders* / psychology