FACTORS AFFECTING Sleep: A Scoping Review

Background: Restful sleep is foundational to an individual's overall well-being and vitality. Rejuvenating during sleep, our brain cells actively replenish their energy reserves, ensuring we wake up refreshed and energized. Yet, numerous individuals struggle with sleep disturbances influenced by various factors. Purpose: This review delves into the determinants of sleep quality, detailing potential reasons and repercussions of disrupted sleep and the long-term effects on the body. While primarily focusing on medical perspectives, we also examine societal, technological, occupational, and habitual influences. We present principal elements impacting sleep quality and discuss prevalent metrics employed in model evaluations. This comprehensive review uniquely spans diverse domains, aiming to elucidate the interconnectedness of insomnia causes using popular metrics, and investigates the changing frequency of COVID-related discussions in the literature. Materials and Methods: Adhering to PRISMA-ScR guidelines, our research was primarily sourced from the widely acknowledged ScienceDirect database. Results: Out of 152 potential studies, 43 were deemed relevant for this review. Predominantly, articles emphasized sleep quality's role in overall health. Articles were curated based on title relevance and depth of content. Post eligibility, the 43 selected articles were categorized by publication year, type, country, scope, COVID-19 mentions, and type of virtualization. Data revealed that persistent sleep disorders can severely affect holistic health, even leading to life-threatening conditions. While data spanned several medical specialties, the brain's role in sleep regulation requires further exploration. Conclusion: The research underscores the importance of identifying and addressing sleep quality determinants to tackle broader health challenges. While there's a substantial body of knowledge on the topic, gaps remain in specific medical domains. Comprehensive insights into insomnia's causes and its correlation with cardiovascular and neurological conditions provide a holistic understanding. Identifying and publicizing these key sleep influencers can drive global awareness and solutions.