John Cresfield typically gets around six hours of sleep each night—if he’s lucky. Most mornings, he’s up by 3 a.m., tossing and turning for hours before drifting off again. Like many, he brushed off his insomnia, chalking it up to an old evolutionary instinct—one person in the tribe staying awake at night to guard against predators. What Cresfield didn’t realize is that his fragmented sleep could be more than just a nuisance; it may be a direct contributor to his heart disease.
Research from the National Sleep Foundation (NSF) highlights a sobering reality: African Americans consistently get less sleep than any other ethnic group in the U.S. While some causes of sleep deprivation can be managed through lifestyle changes—what experts call “sleep hygiene”—others, like poverty, racism, and chronic stress, are harder to control. These sociocultural and economic factors create unique challenges for African Americans in achieving restorative sleep.
“The only way to understand sleep is to study animals,” says Dr. Jerome Siegel, professor of psychiatry at UCLA’s Center for Sleep Research. “Sleep is essential for survival—whether you’re a human or a giraffe.”
Indeed, the biology of sleep is both universal and diverse. Some animals, like the giraffe, sleep as little as two hours per day, while others, like the tardigrade, can enter a suspended state for decades. Dolphins sleep with one half of their brain at a time. Migrating birds nap mid-flight. Human sleep may seem simpler, but it too is shaped by evolutionary, genetic, and environmental forces—including race and class.
A Peek into the African American bedroom
According to the NSF’s “2025 Sleep in America” poll, African Americans reported the shortest sleep duration on weeknights—just 6 hours and 14 minutes, on average. Despite this, many respondents believed they needed only seven hours to function optimally—less than what Asians and Hispanics reported needing (7 hours, 29 minutes). The NSF recommends 7–9 hours of sleep per night for adults aged 18–64.
The poll also revealed that African Americans are more likely to engage in stimulating activities before bed. Nearly 75 percent watch TV in bed, 71 percent pray or participate in religious rituals, and 17 percent perform job-related work. These pre-bedtime routines, while culturally significant, often interfere with the body’s natural circadian rhythm and delay the onset of sleep.
“African Americans should improve their sleep hygiene,” says Dr. Thomas J. Balkin, past chairman of the NSF. “That means establishing consistent bed and wake times, avoiding caffeine and electronics before bed, and using the bedroom only for sleep and sex.”
Still, improved sleep habits can only go so far. Chronic psychosocial stressors—unemployment, systemic racism, financial strain—affect not just when African Americans sleep, but how deeply they sleep. These stressors have also been linked to a troubling phenomenon disproportionately affecting Black Americans: sleep paralysis.
The witch on my chest: Sleep paralysis in Black communities
Though not mentioned in the NSF poll, sleep paralysis (SP) is a common experience among African Americans. SP is a temporary inability to move or speak while falling asleep or waking up, often accompanied by vivid hallucinations and a sensation of pressure on the chest. In folklore, these experiences are described as a “witch riding your chest.” In clinical terms, SP is classified as a parasomnia—an abnormal behavior during sleep.
“It felt like someone was holding me down. I couldn’t scream, I couldn’t move. I thought I was dying,” says Nelson Miller, a 51-year-old African American who has experienced SP multiple times since childhood.
According to Dr. Vanessa Enku at Howard University’s Sleep Disorder Center, African Americans are especially vulnerable to SP due to a combination of genetic predisposition, diet, stress, and cultural beliefs. Sleeping on one’s back—a common trigger—may exacerbate episodes.
An informal survey by Our Weekly was given last Saturday in Los Angeles’ Leimert Park during The Crenshaw Mile, a community walk, run, jog event. The sleep survey found that of 120 African American respondents, 80 had experienced SP, and 10 knew a family member who had. For many, the phenomenon is terrifying, yet culturally normalized. Older relatives may advise placing a broom outside the bedroom door or attribute the episode to supernatural causes.
Scientific literature refers to the condition as Isolated Sleep Paralysis (ISP) when not associated with underlying disorders such as narcolepsy or anxiety (Ohayon et al., 1999; Bell et al., 1984). Though widely misunderstood, the condition may become less traumatic when individuals are educated about it, as was the case with Miller.
“A college professor once told me it was lactic acid buildup,” he recalls. “Even though that wasn’t accurate, believing that gave me something to hold onto. I didn’t panic as much.”
Sleep and disease in African Americans
The health implications of poor sleep go far beyond next-day grogginess. African Americans suffer disproportionately from sleep-related health conditions like obstructive sleep apnea, hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. These conditions are often exacerbated—or even triggered—by insufficient or poor-quality sleep.
Dr. Jose Loredo, professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego, notes that African Americans’ sleep patterns and attitudes toward sleep must be considered when designing public health campaigns and treatment protocols.
“Sleep impacts everything from mental health to metabolic health. It’s time for medical providers to address sleep disparities as a serious public health issue,” says Loredo.
While sleep clinics have existed since the 1970s, early studies rarely addressed the unique physiological or cultural factors influencing African American sleep. That began to change when Howard University opened its Sleep Center in 2007, one of the first facilities in the U.S. focused on sleep disorders in the Black community. Researchers there are studying not just behavior, but also structural factors—such as facial bone anatomy—that influence conditions like sleep apnea.
Racial sleep disparities by the numbers
Key findings from the NSF’s 2025 poll include:
• Sleep Duration: African Americans sleep
34–38 minutes less than Whites and Asians
on average.
• Sleep Paralysis & Stress: While not officially
surveyed, anecdotal evidence and limited aca-
demic studies suggest a higher prevalence of
SP in Black populations.
• Pre-Bed Routines: 75 percent of Black
respondents watch TV before bed, and 71
percent engage in prayer—more than any
other group.
• Sexual Activity: 10 percent of African
Americans report having sex nightly—more
than double the rate of Whites (4 percent) and
ten times higher than Asians (1 percent).
• Financial and Job Stress: 12 percent lose
sleep nightly over financial worries, and 10
percent over job concerns—higher than any
other ethnic group.
• Sleep Disorders: African Americans have the
highest rate of diagnosed sleep apnea (14 per
cent), while Whites report the highest rate of
diagnosed insomnia (10 percent).
In comparison, Asians reported the fewest sleep complaints and the lowest use of sleep medication. Hispanics, like African Americans, showed higher concern over finances and relationships affecting their sleep.
What can be done?
While improving sleep hygiene is a helpful starting point, it cannot solve the racial disparities in sleep health. Public health initiatives must account for systemic inequalities, cultural beliefs, and biological differences in how sleep disorders present across different populations.
Dr. Enku urges sleep specialists to take a more holistic, culturally informed approach.
“We can’t treat sleep like it’s just a personal problem,” she says. “It’s a social, economic, and biological issue that requires systemic solutions.”
Greater investment in African American sleep research, like that being done at Howard, is essential. Only with targeted study and culturally competent care can we begin to address this silent crisis—one that touches everything from mental health to life expectancy.
