Uc Science Today

Why do pregnant women tend to suffer from sleep disorders? Financial status of the future mothers could be one of the reasons leading to insomnia. That’s according to Jennifer Felder, a clinical psychologist at the University of California, San Francisco. “Women of color and women from more economically disadvantaged background are disproportionately affected by poor sleep during pregnancy so it is possible that this may explain part of the reason we have such big disparities in the preterm birth rate.” Lack of resources brings along other inequality factors affecting pregnant women’s sleep. "Stress and psychological problems, noisy neighborhoods, discrimination and racism, not feeling safe.” Felder says researchers studying different disciplines – be it psychology, environmental science or public health - need to combine their efforts in helping low income pregnant women improve sleeping patterns.