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Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults
Published on: January 26, 2019
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Exploring nationwide patterns of sleep problems from late adolescence to adulthood using machine learning
Adrian G Zucco1, Henning Johannes Drews1, Jeroen F Uleman1
1Copenhagen Health Complexity Center, Department of Public Health, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Science Advances
|September 24, 2025
Summary
Sleep problems are rising significantly in young adults, with childhood adversities like parental divorce linked to insomnia and nightmares. This highlights the complex interplay of medical and psychosocial factors in sleep health.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Epidemiology
- Machine Learning in Health
Background:
- Sleep problems represent a growing public health concern, particularly among young adults.
- Understanding the life-course determinants of sleep issues is crucial for effective intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate sleep problem patterns from adolescence to adulthood.
- To explore early life-course factors associated with sleep problems.
- To identify clusters of sleep-related health service utilization.
Main Methods:
- Utilized nationwide Danish health surveys and registers.
- Applied unsupervised machine learning for life-course embeddings on 2.2 million individuals.
- Analyzed data from individuals born between 1980 and 2015.
Main Results:
- Observed a significant increase in self-reported sleep problems (34% to 49%) in individuals aged 15-45 between 2010-2021.
- Documented a tenfold increase in melatonin use.
- Identified clusters of sleep-related prescriptions, diagnoses, and procedures with age-specific patterns.
- Found shared childhood adversities (sibling psychiatric illness, foster care, parental divorce) linked to insomnia and nightmares.
Conclusions:
- Sleep problems are increasing substantially in young adults.
- Childhood adversities are associated with various sleep disorders.
- Sleep disturbances result from a complex interaction between medical and psychosocial factors.
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