--- title: Sleep Disorders: Firefighter Deaths Linked to Sleep Problems description: Poor sleep could explain why more than 60% of firefighter deaths are caused by heart attacks and traffic accidents, a new study has found. canonical: https://time.com/3584980/sleep-problems-firefighters-death-insomnia-shift-work-sleep-apnea/ author: Helen Regan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-14T08:03:40.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T11:26:20.026Z article:section: Health og:title: Poor Sleep Linked to Firefighter Deaths og:description: Almost 40% of firefighters suffer from at least one sleep disorder og:url: https://time.com/3584980/sleep-problems-firefighters-death-insomnia-shift-work-sleep-apnea/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc4187adf86b366b/698768c955a859f8e6a841ab/173304960.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: 173304960 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Poor Sleep Linked to Firefighter Deaths twitter:description: Almost 40% of firefighters suffer from at least one sleep disorder twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc4187adf86b366b/698768c955a859f8e6a841ab/173304960.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Firefighter Deaths Could be Linked to Poor Sleep by [Helen Regan](/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Nov 14, 2014 8:03 AM CUT  Fireman Contemplating in Front of Fire Engine Fireman Contemplating in Front of Fire EngineGetty Images by [Helen Regan](/author/helen-regan/) ## Helen Regan Nov 14, 2014 8:03 AM CUT Sleep problems could be a major factor in explaining why more than 60 percent of firefighter deaths are caused by heart attacks and traffic accidents, a new study published in _The Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine_ has [found](http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/firefighter-accidents-are-linked-to-sleep-problems/?%5Fr=1 "undefined"). Researchers sampled almost 7,000 firefighters across the U.S. and examined how many tested positive for sleep disorders such as obstructive sleep apnea, insomnia, shift-work disorder and restless leg syndrome, the New York _Times_ reports. They found that 37 percent of firefighters suffered from at least one type of sleep disorder. “Our findings demonstrate the impact of common sleep disorders on firefighter health and safety, and their connection to the two leading causes of death among firefighters,” [said](http://www.sleepreviewmag.com/2014/11/firefighters-sleep-disorders-higher-risk-motor-vehicle-accidents/ "undefined") lead author Laura K. Barger. “Unfortunately, more than 80% of firefighters who screened positive for a common sleep disorder were undiagnosed and untreated.” Barber’s team found that when compared with those who had a good night’s sleep, firefighters who had a sleep disorder were more likely to crash their car or fall asleep at the wheel. They are also more likely to report serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, depression and anxiety. \[[_NYT_](http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/11/13/firefighter-accidents-are-linked-to-sleep-problems/?%5Fr=1 "undefined")\] ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3584980/sleep-problems-firefighters-death-insomnia-shift-work-sleep-apnea/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3584980/sleep-problems-firefighters-death-insomnia-shift-work-sleep-apnea/"},"headline":"Firefighter Deaths Could be Linked to Poor Sleep","datePublished":"2014-11-14T08:03:40.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-21T11:26:20.026Z","description":"Almost 40% of firefighters suffer from at least one sleep disorder","url":"https://time.com/3584980/sleep-problems-firefighters-death-insomnia-shift-work-sleep-apnea/","keywords":["Research","study","firefighters","deaths"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc4187adf86b366b/698768c955a859f8e6a841ab/173304960.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Helen Regan","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/helen-regan/"}],"articleSection":"Health","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltbc4187adf86b366b/698768c955a859f8e6a841ab/173304960.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"173304960","caption":"173304960","creditText":"Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/health/","name":"Health"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/research/","name":"Research"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3584980/sleep-problems-firefighters-death-insomnia-shift-work-sleep-apnea/","name":"Firefighter Deaths Could be Linked to Poor Sleep"}}]}] ```