10 Most Sleep-Deprived Careers

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Think you're tired? Turns out it could be worse. Anyone working as a home health aide or a lawyer might be even more tired than you. That is because those two professions were rated the most sleep-deprived occupations, averaging around seven hours of sleep a night.  That is one hour less of sleep a night that doctors recommend. On the other end of the spectrum, forest and logging workers were the most well-rested, averaging seven hours and 20 minutes of sleep a night.   

According to the research that was conducted by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention's National Health Interview Survey and analyzed by bedding company Sleepy's, no profession on the list hit the recommended eight hours of sleep a night. Police officers, physicians and economists rounded out the top five most sleep-deprived careers.  They were followed by:

6.     Social workers

7.     Computer programmers

8.     Financial analysts

9.     Plant operators

10.  Secretaries

The most rested professions did not fare much better, averaging only a few precious minutes of sleep more than their sleep-deprived counterparts.  The other top 10 well-rested workers:

2.     Hairstylists

3.     Sales representatives

4.     Bartenders

5.     Construction workers

6.     Athletes

7.     Landscapers

8.     Engineers

9.     Aircraft pilots

10.  Teachers

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"No matter your occupation, stress level or whether you work outdoors or at a desk, Daylight Saving Time offers an important reminder of the effects quality sleep can have on the work force," said Robert Oexman, director of the Sleep to Live Institute. "We encourage people to take stock of their sleep habits and make improvements where they can."

The information in this study was based on the responses of 27,000 adults who were interviewed about sleep habits. The full list of sleep times used in this article can be found here. 

This story was provided by BusinessNewsDaily, a sister site to LiveScience. Reach BusinessNewsDaily staff writer David Mielach at Dmielach@techmedianetwork.com. Follow him on Twitter @D_M89.