Amazon has polled its 70,000-strong workforce on everything sleep ahead of clocks going forward this Sunday – with sleep on everyone’s minds as we adjust to summer nights.
Exactly half of Swansea residents say they wouldn’t allow their pet in bed, according to new research. This mirrors the UK overall response, which is also 50%.
The data reveals that a majority of women say they sleep with a pet in the bed – compared to less than half of men – while 18 to 24-year-olds are much more likely to let a pet sleep in their bed, with almost two thirds regularly welcoming their slumber sidekick.
The data also found 47% of Swansea are guilty of snoring – which comes in as the UK’s number one pet peeve.
Sleep coach and author Nick Littlehales says “At the end of the day, you must optimise your bedroom for what the space is designed for: sleep. And sometimes that means telling your dog to sleep in their own bed.”
Pets in the bed
| City | Yes | No |
| Edinburgh | 57% | 43% |
| Newcastle | 57% | 43% |
| Nottingham | 56% | 44% |
| Liverpool | 56% | 44% |
| Sheffield | 55% | 45% |
| Bristol | 53% | 47% |
| London | 50% | 50% |
| Swansea | 50% | 50% |
| Milton Keynes | 48% | 52% |
| Leeds | 47% | 53% |
| Manchester | 47% | 53% |
| Coventry | 45% | 55% |
| Leicester | 44% | 56% |
| Birmingham | 42% | 58% |
Sharing a bed
When asked what they find most annoying when sharing a bed with someone else, a majority (53%) of Brits picked snoring.
Milton Keynes has the country’s worst snorers, where 58% of people say their partners’ garbled breathing keeps them up at night. Followed by London (56%) and Birmingham (55%). People looking for a partner who doesn’t snore should try Liverpool.
Men are worse snorers than women. 61% of women said it was the thing their partner did that kept them up at night, compared to only 50% of men.
Next worse was hogging the sheets – something 15% of people confessed they wish their partner wouldn’t do. Tossing and turning was next, but seems to be a much worse problem as we age – 10% of all ages said it was the biggest problem, compared to 26% of over-65s.
How sleep impacts our relationships has been discussed by psychologist and relationship expert, Jo Hemming.
She said: “I really want to reiterate that sleeping in separate beds or bedrooms should be a last resort for couples. It’s not just the physical intimacy, it’s all the things you miss out when you’re lying in bed together. The closeness you have before you go to sleep or when you wake up in the morning is something you just won’t get when you’re in separate rooms. I think it’s robbing you of a certain amount of quality time, particularly in our busy lives.”
Snoring
| City | Snorers |
| Milton Keynes | 58% |
| London | 56% |
| Leicester | 55% |
| Birmingham | 55% |
| Bristol | 54% |
| Nottingham | 53% |
| Leeds | 53% |
| Coventry | 52% |
| Sheffield | 52% |
| Newcastle | 52% |
| Edinburgh | 51% |
| Manchester | 49% |
| Swansea | 47% |
| Liverpool | 45% |
Sleeping position
Most people sleep on their left side – but should they? Sleep expert Nick Littlehales casts doubt on the most common sleep state and offers tips on getting to sleep at night.
He said: “That we should be getting eight hours of sleep every night is one of those persistent myths that does more harm than good. It’s been taken out of context, much like ‘sleeping on your back being good for you’”
- Side (left) = 36%
- Side (right) = 32%
- Front = 18%
- Back = 11%
- Women are more likely to sleep on their left than men (41% vs 34%)
- Men are more likely to sleep on their back than women (9% vs 12%)
