Sleep disorders a risk for recent immigrants, say students, professor

Saad Iqbal sleeps about five hours per night. 

Iqbal, who moved to Edmonton in 2021 from Pakistan to study at the University of Alberta, is one of several recent immigrants who say sleep disorders are widespread in Alberta's international student bodies and in some diaspora communities. 

"It was affecting my attention in the classroom," said Iqbal. "You're very sleepy, you're yawning, so you're not attentive to the conversations that are taking place."

Iqbal, vice-president of the U of A's International Students' Association, says time-zone differences, part-time jobs, and adjusting to a new environment all contribute to the difficulty some students face getting rest. 

"The [students] that I have talked to … go through anxiety and stress," he said. "There's always these different stressors that keep you worried."

The University of Alberta supports international students dealing with various personal challenges, and newcomers believe sleeping issues span different communities and institutions. 

One Swiss study found immigrants were more likely to face sleep disturbances than non-immigrants because they faced higher levels of emotional distress. A 2020 analysis of previously published studies found migrants and refugees faced a greater risk of snoring, metabolic diseases, and insomnia. 

Research published in 2019 found that immigrants living in Canada were less likely to report troubled sleep, but authors suggested different cultural interpretations of sleep could be a factor. 

University of Calgary professor and sleep physician Dr. Sachin Pendharkar says newcomers to Canada face challenges in accessing health care in general and may not recognize the importance of healthy sleep habits.  

He described Alberta's current care model for sleep disorders as "fragmented," with a mix of public and private providers offering different testing through different types of facilities. 

"Patients have a difficult time figuring out where to go for what problem," Pendharkar said. "When you add on to that, there are potentially other barriers related to work or home responsibilities … they just compound the problem for many [immigrants]," he said. 

Poor sleep is associated with an increased risk of depression, obesity, diabetes, and all-cause mortality, according to Health Canada. 

The Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology recommends between seven and nine hours of sleep per night for adults between 18 and 64.

Edmonton resident Eric Awuah says he talks to loved ones in his birth country, Ghana, every day over the phone, and those conversations can last from 10 p.m. until midnight. Ghana time is six hours ahead of Alberta.

"In trying to keep up with family, my mother … sometimes I have to like forfeit sleep just so I can call when they are up," said Awuah, a PhD student at U of A.

Stress levels also drive his sleeping issues, Awuah says. 

"There is a huge cultural responsibility, moral responsibility … on you as somebody who has immigrated for greener pastures to also be able to support your family back home," he said. 

Awuah wants more Edmonton residents from Africa to appreciate why getting proper sleep and managing stress levels is important, and to use the free resources that are available.

Edmonton's Africa Centre provides free counselling through a partnership with the Alberta Black Therapists Network. 

Psychologist Noreen Sibanda, the network's director, said sleep habits are a good indicator of mental health and other challenges newcomers may be facing.

"Having to come to a new place where you don't feel connected … Finding yourself living in two worlds where your heart is home but you're physically here, and when you do that, sleep is probably impacted," she said.  

Pendharkar said sleep health needs to be a larger focus for medical schools and in Canadian culture as a whole.

"I think there's a real potential for under-recognition and under-diagnosis."