Abstract
We examined disparities in sleep problems by sexual orientation among a population-based sample of adults, using data from the New York City (NYC) Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NYC HANES), a population-based, cross-sectional survey conducted in 2013–2014 (n = 1220). Two log binomial regression models were created to assess the relative prevalence of sleep problems by sexual orientation. In model 1, heterosexual adults served as the reference category, controlling for gender, age, race/ethnicity, education, marital status, and family income. And in model 2, heterosexual men served as the reference category, controlling for age, race/ethnicity, education, marital status, and family income. We found that almost 42% of NYC adults reported sleep problems in the past 2 weeks. Bisexual adults had 1.4 times the relative risk of sleep problems compared to heterosexual adults (p = 0.037). Compared to heterosexual men, heterosexual and bisexual women had 1.3 and 1.6 times the risk of sleep problems, respectively (p < 0.05). Overall, adults who self-identified as bisexual had a significantly greater risk of sleep problems than adults who self-identified as heterosexual.
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Acknowledgments
We thank the people of New York City who participated in the study and the staff who worked tirelessly on the project. In addition, the authors thank all those involved in the field data collection. We thank Hayden Mountcastle for formatting this manuscript.
Contributors
D.T. Duncan designed the study, interpreted the results, and drafted the article. R. Kanchi assisted with the study design, conducted all data analyses, interpreted the results, and drafted the article. L. Tantay and M. Hernandez critically revised the manuscript regarding health equity. C. Letamendi also contributed a health equity perspective, and organized collaboration between NYC DOHMH authors. C. Chernov checked the data and edited the manuscript. L. Thorpe is co-Principal Investigator of NYC HANES, and critically revised the manuscript regarding important intellectual content. All authors have given final approval of the version to be published and are publicly responsible for its contents. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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Duncan, D.T., Kanchi, R., Tantay, L. et al. Disparities in Sleep Problems by Sexual Orientation among New York City Adults: an Analysis of the New York City Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2013–2014. J Urban Health 95, 781–786 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0268-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0268-0