New Study Sheds Light on Sleep Disruptions while Traveling

A global study commissioned by IHG® Hotels & Resortsshows that sleep disruption is a primary concern for travelers, with four in five (80%) stating they have trouble sleeping when travelling away from home.

The findings were announced to coincide World Sleep Day, an annual day devoted to tackling important sleep issues. The findings from the survey revealed:

• The business traveller loses around 58 minutes of sleep each night when staying away from home, averaging just 5 hours and 17 minutes of sleep

• The biggest causes of a restless night’s sleep for those traveling are:

o Different environment (44%)

o Unfamiliar noises (35%)

o Working late (35%)

“It’s no secret that travelling can be challenging for our health, particularly when it comes to maintaining our normal sleep patterns. Light is the major environmental time cue that resets the circadian clock in our brains each day, which is easily thrown off when travelling,” commented Dr. Steven W. Lockley, Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, and advisor to the study.

More than two thirds (67%) of those surveyed stated they feel more tired when they are away from home. To aid sleep, nearly a half either try listening to music (47%) or watching TV (45%) to try and fall asleep.

To help travelers combat a restless night away from home, IHG has piloted the use of portable and versatile JOURNI™ Mobile Task Light developed by Healthe by Lighting Science, a leader in innovative LED lighting solutions. The portable LED task light is designed to help regulate sleep when traveling.

“Light can also be a stimulant, directly alerting the brain, or promote sleep before bedtime, depending on the spectrum and intensity of light exposure. Having greater control of light exposure when traveling can help promote sleep at the right time or wake at the right time, preserving some sense of sleep normalcy when on the road, said Lockley.”