Between October 18–21, this website will move to a new web address (from health.gov to odphp.health.gov). During that time, some functions might not work as expected. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we’re working to make this transition as smooth as possible.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion

Increase the proportion of adults who get enough sleep — SH‑03 Data Methodology and Measurement

On this page:  About the National Data  |  Methodology  |  History

About the National Data

Data

Data Source:  National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), CDC/NCHS

Baseline: 72.3 percent of adults aged 18 years and over got sufficient sleep in 2020

Target: 73.3 percent

Numerator
Number of adults aged 18 years and over who get an average of at least 7 hours of sleep per day.
Denominator
Number of adults aged 18 years and over.
Target-setting method
Minimal statistical significance
Target-setting method details
Minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline.
Target-setting method justification
Trend data were evaluated for this objective, but it was not possible to project a target because the trend was moving away from the desired direction. The standard error was used to calculate a target based on minimal statistical significance, assuming the same standard error for the target as for the baseline. This method was used because it was a statistically significant improvement from the baseline.

Methodology

Questions used to obtain the national baseline data

(For additional information, please visit the data source page linked above.)

From the 2020 National Health Interview Survey:

Numerator:
On average, how many hours of sleep do you get in a 24-hour period? ______ Hours

Methodology notes

Participants were asked how many hours they sleep during a 24-hour period. The numerator data includes those participants reporting 7 or more hours of sleep per day.

History

Comparable HP2020 objective
Retained, which includes core objectives that are continuing from HP2020 with no change in measurement.
Revision History
  • Revised. 

    In 2022, due to the 2019 NHIS redesign, the baseline was revised from 67.5% in 2017 to 72.3% in 2020. The target was revised from 68.6% to 73.3% using the original target setting method.
  • Revised. 

    In 2024, the following categories were recalculated with the use of a newer variable: Never married, American Indian or Alaska Native only, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander only, 2 or more races only, Not Hispanic or Latino American Indian or Alaska Native only, Not Hispanic or Latino Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander only, Not Hispanic or Latino 2 or more races only. Estimates from data year 2022 or earlier may vary slightly from estimates previously reported. The baseline, baseline year and target were not affected.