LONDON: Adequate sleep every night may improve working life by reducing perceived job stress and minimising negative attitude toward work, says a study.

Disturbed sleep increases stress response and emotional reactivity, the results showed. “The effect of sleep problems on stress emphasises the importance of good sleep for functioning in everyday life,” said lead author Torbjorn Akerstedt, professor at Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden.

The researchers analysed data from the 2008 and 2010 surveys of a study comprising 4,827 participants with a mean age of 48 years, including 2,655 females and 2,171 males.

Results showed that higher work demands predicted subsequent sleep disturbances at the two-year follow-up. Similarly, sleep disturbances predicted a higher perception of stress, higher work demands, a lower degree of control, and less social support at work two years later.

The results suggest that there may be a reciprocal, causal pathway between job strain and disturbed sleep, implying that interventions to treat sleep problems may improve work satisfaction.

The study was published in the journal Sleep.