A systematic review of workplace behavioral interventions to promote sleep health in men

Sleep health is an important aspect of wellbeing and merits incorporation into workplace health promotion programs for employees. Men are a unique population with whom many traditional workplace health promotion programs have had limited success. This systematic review posed the question do workplace health promotion programs improve sleep among men, and what program design features contribute to improving sleep among working men? Databases searched were MEDLINE, EMBASE, the Cochrane Library, CINHAL, Academic Search Complete and Health Source: Nursing/Academic Edition and Google Scholar. Empirical research reporting non-pharmacological behavioral sleep programs and/or interventions for working men were eligible for review. 1049 articles were identified; 15 intervention studies were included: 13 interventions were delivered through workplaces, and two recruited workers to programs delivered outside of work. Interventions incorporated health education, stress reduction/relaxation, and/or physical activity components. Eleven studies reported positive findings for sleep health outcome(s) in men. A moderate level of evidence exists for sleep health programs with physical activity and stress management components. Evidence for the effectiveness of sleep health education programs was mixed. That only one study included a gender-sensitized intervention, where men's preferences shaped the content of a stress-reduction program which resulted in improved sleep quality, attests to the insufficient evidence and lack of gender-specific content and analyses. Next research steps should include considering cultural constructions of masculinity in program design in order to strengthen the appeal and engagement of men, and optimize health benefits for working men.