SLEEP quality improved across five European populations following the COVID-19 pandemic, but long term tracking revealed that mental health, financial security, and lifestyle factors remained the strongest predictors of healthy sleep, highlighting new opportunities for population health monitoring and preventive care
Sleephas emerged as a key indicator of physical and mental wellbeing, yet relatively little is known about how sleep patterns evolve following large scale public health emergencies. Researchers analysed more than four years of longitudinal data from five European countries to investigate changes in sleep quality from the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic through to the postpandemic period, providing new insights into the factors that consistently shape sleep health over time.
Longitudinal Data Captured Pandemic Recovery
The analysis drew on the ongoing COME HERE survey, which followed 8,063 participants across France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Sweden between April 2020 and September 2024. Across 13 survey waves and more than 60,000 observations, researchers tracked sleep quality alongside socioeconomic, psychological, and lifestyle measures
Overall, average sleep quality improved over time, although fluctuations closely mirrored successive waves of COVID-19 infection. These findings suggest that the pandemic temporarily disrupted normal seasonal sleep patterns before recovery occurred during the following years
Multivariable analyses identified several consistent predictors of sleep quality throughout the study. Female sex, income, employment status, physical activity, mental health, and social interactions were all associated with sleep outcomes. Among these, financial security and mental health demonstrated particularly strong and sustained associations
Findings Could Support Smarter Population Health Monitoring
Importantly, the relationships between these predictors and sleep quality remained stable across countries and demographic groups, including differences in age, sex, and educational attainment. The consistency of the findings from the height of the pandemic into the postpandemic period suggests that the determinants of sleep extend well beyond temporary public health disruptions
From an innovation perspective, the study demonstrates the value of large scale longitudinal population datasets for identifying persistent behavioural and social drivers of health. Rather than relying on isolated snapshots of wellbeing, repeated monitoring enabled researchers to distinguish temporary changes from enduring risk factors
The findings also support greater integration of sleep metrics into digital health platforms and public health surveillance programmes. By combining longitudinal data with measures of mental health, socioeconomic status, and lifestyle behaviours, healthcare systems may be better positioned to identify individuals at risk of poor sleep and intervene earlier with targeted prevention strategies
Although the study did not evaluate specific interventions, it highlights the potential for data driven approaches to support more personalised and proactive sleep health management across diverse populations
Reference
Lepinteur A et al. Trajectories and predictors of sleep quality during and after the pandemic in five European populations. Sleep Health. 2026;12(1):52-60
Featured Image: Gorodenkoff on Adobe Stock
Author:
Jess Nicholson
