Do women need more sleep than men? Science says they do – DW – 10/16/2025

Sleep is often viewed as a universal human need. But research shows that women not only need sleep differently than men, they also need more of it.

DW spoke to women in different regions of the world, all sharing stories of needing more rest than they get and telling us about “sleep debt.”

Take Sana Akhand, for example: Akhand led an HR department in New York’s tech industry when she hit a wall of exhaustion, realized it was affecting her mental health and was forced to quit her job.

“I would drink myself a glass of wine every night and sit in front of the TV,” she told DW. “I was tired. I had nothing else to give.”

These days, sleep is central to Akhand’s sense of well-being. This is one of the reasons why she decided not to have children. She is in bed by 10 pm and sleeps nine hours a night – this is non-negotiable, she said. “I wake up around 8 a.m., that’s what my body wants.”

What does science say about biological sex and sleep?

Women sleep an average of 11 to 13 minutes more than men each night. Some studies suggest they may need an extra 20 minutes to support complex daytime tasks like multitasking, emotional regulation or hormonal balance and menstrual cycles.

During the first part of the menstrual cycle, the follicular phase, rising estrogen levels improve sleep quality and increase REM sleep, the phase associated with dreaming, memory, and emotional processing.

But during the second half of the sleep cycle, the luteal phase, rising levels of progesterone can make women feel sleepy, and paradoxically, lead to poorer sleep – more waking at night and up to 27% less deep sleep.

A tired woman sleeps at her work desk; head resting on folded arms
Physiology, biology, and hormonal functions can cause fatigue in women. But societal demands and expectations at home mean women often have a greater ‘sleep debt’ than menImage: Anna Tolypova/AnnaStills/Picture Alliance

Shantani Moore, a Body Intelligence coach in Los Angeles, spoke to DW in a personal capacity and said she plans her day’s schedule around her menstrual cycle and sleep patterns.

“It’s something I’ve consciously worked on,” Moore said. “When I don’t get enough sleep, it’s a toxic marriage between feeling groggy and tired. Then brain fog, making poor decisions, getting angry at your partner, saying yes to things you shouldn’t… it all adds up.”

sleep, family, work, chores, sleep

In addition to biology, social and structural factors can also influence how and how well women sleep.

For Sabrina, who lives in Karachi, Pakistan, who asked DW to change her name, the demands of daily life were a major source of her exhaustion. Sabrina said she usually only gets six to seven hours of sleep a night, and that’s not enough.

“To feel rested and keep my mind fresh throughout the week, I need 12 hours [of sleep per night]This is more than the average of eight,” Sabrina said.

When Sabrina doesn’t get 12 hours, she tries to take short naps, which sometimes stretch on for hours. “A 30-minute nap can turn into four hours.”

He said that it is not just work that makes him tired, but constant mental and household work also makes him tired.

Sabrina said, “In the morning, I iron my clothes, prepare breakfast and then lunch, clean the house and cook dinner. And when I get too tired to do that, I start beating myself up mentally. I feel lazy, even if it’s just a 10-minute task.”

On weekends, when she visits family, she sleeps for 12 to 13 hours continuously without any interruption.

Experts say this burden is much higher than it actually is; This is systemic.

“Women more often experience shift work disorder [than men]And they also work more non-traditional shifts, and suffer more from its negative effects,” said sleep expert Emerson Wickwire of the University of Maryland, US.

“If you take ‘9 to 5’ as a standard workday, that means that, relative to men, women work outside of those hours, including social demands,” Wickwire told DW.

Clara Paula, a self-employed professional in Berlin, seems to have found a solution in freelancing. He told DW that his flexible hours allow him to get more sleep when he needs it.

“I now get seven, eight, even nine hours of sleep,” Paula said. “No one is telling me I have to sit in front of a computer. I start later, take breaks, and finish faster.”

But it’s not just about the hours – the quantity – of your sleep but also the quality. Research shows that women need deeper sleep because of their physiology.

“By this we mean more stage N3, the deepest stage of non-REM sleep, and often more REM sleep as well,” said Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, a sleep psychologist and clinical researcher at Penn State Health, US.

In good shape – how sleep is affected by daily life

Please enable JavaScript to view this video, and consider upgrading to a web browser Supports HTML5 video

Even in strictly controlled laboratory studies, where healthy men and women are monitored without stress or sleep deprivation, women consistently sleep longer and deeper.

“This is the basis for the idea that women may biologically need more sleep,” Fernandez-Mendoza said.

This may reduce biological resilience; A protective mechanism seen in other areas of research, such as heart health and longevity.

Fernandez-Mendoza said, “It makes sense that when a body is designed to create life, it should be protected. A woman should be able to sleep and function even while carrying another human being.”

Yet despite this inherent resiliency, women report insomnia symptoms twice as often as men.

“It starts young,” Fernandez-Mendoza said. “Around age 11 or 12, girls start to have more trouble sleeping than boys, and this trend continues into adulthood.”

Does sleeping in on the weekend help? Yes and no.

“Sleeping can help you feel alert again — you’ve repaid your sleep debt,” Fernandez-Mendoza said.

But this does not mean that your body has completely recovered.

“It may reduce sleepiness, but it cannot reverse the cumulative effects on health,” he said. Studies show that cognitive functions, including attention and reaction time, take longer to return.

Edited by: Zulfikar Abbani

Source link