Do People in Illinois, Wisconsin, or Iowa Get the Best Sleep?

On average, I get anywhere from six to eight hours of sleep a night, which, for a morning radio DJ, I think is not only pretty good but in the upper percentile for my occupation. I simply cannot function if I get less than six hours of sleep. Generally, if I'm able, I use Saturday and Sunday to catch up on sleep; if I'm lucky, I can knock out for nine hours at a time.

The folks at Leafwell, experts on medical marijuana, have conducted a study that reveals which states suffer from a lack of sleep compared to those who sleep well. The study examined the average nightly sleep duration in each state as well as the number of searches for more than 90 search terms including, ‘insomnia,’ ‘lack of sleep,’ and ‘I can’t sleep.’

Key Takeaways:

• Hawaii is the state suffering the most with their sleep, with an overall sleep score of just 9.87 out of 100.  
• Georgia has the second highest rate of sleep-related issues, followed by Nevada in third.

Illinois' Quality of Sleep:

Illinois came in at #22 as a state with an overall score of 44.71. Keep in mind, this is one of those surveys where you want your state to rank lower. A higher overall score means a higher overall quality of sleep.

Wisconsin's Quality of Sleep:

Meanwhile, Wisconsin ranked in the bottom 10 of the study at #40 with a score of 71.19. Wisconsin residents generally see a restful night's sleep compared to various other states, in terms of duration, and are less likely to suffer from the debilitating effects of insomnia.

Iowa's Quality of Sleep:

However, it was Iowa who ranked the most favorably on this list! Iowa has the seventh lowest rate of sleep-related issues, with an overall sleep score of 77.52, per Leafwell. It's an impressive feat, and maybe it's chalked up due to all the sparse towns and the general quietness they invite at night.

Here's a look at the states whose residents get the best night's sleep overall:

Further Methodology:

Finally, here's a greater look at the methodology behind Leafwell's study:

For 97 search terms relating to problems sleepings, Google Keyword Planner was used to find search volumes averaged over the past 12 months for each state in the US. The search volumes were aggregated by state, divided by state population and multiplied by 100,000.

This search volume data was then indexed with CDC data on prevalence of short sleep duration by state using the weightings given in the table. The overall score is out of 100, with higher scores representing states with better sleep quality. The indicators were min-max scaled from 0 to 10 prior to indexing, where 0 and 10 represent the lowest and highest recorded values for each indicator. 

Visit the CDC's website for tips for better sleep.