Appropriately, as degrees are involved, the city that is at the top of the league according to new figures for sleep deprivation is Cambridge. Amazingly Oxford doesn’t feature but there are a few surprises to be seen in the complete league table that is shown later in the article.

Based on UK Google search data, it has been evaluated which cities are the most sleep-deprived by using detailed information from Google search data. The search engine was used to analyse the number of queries for a wide range of terms related to sleep deprivation such as ‘can’t sleep, help to sleep, beat insomnia’.

The company said of the research: “A good night’s sleep is a modern day luxury. Stressful daily routines, lack of ‘me time’, and a number of social pressures have a significant impact on our ability to rest.

Getting a good night’s sleep is recognised as being vital for normal health. Difficulty in sleeping tends to sabotage someone’s performance throughout the day. There are a number of sleep problems that people suffer from.

Most adults sleep between seven and eight hours although nobody truly knows how much sleep we need. Some people manage well with only four or five hours, while others, given the chance, will gladly sleep for ten hours.

Snoring, stress, depression and anxiety are some of the main causes of sleep problems along with lifestyle problems. Only a relaxed mind can sleep well.

Disturbed sleep doesn’t discriminate but those of us who are most likely to suffer from sleep disorders usually dwell in big cities.

Cambridge was Nº 1 in the league table, followed by Brighton, Manchester and Newcastle when it came to people getting the least amount of shuteye. Surprisingly, the bustling, ‘ever open’ city of London did not feature in the top 10, and is listed at number 12 in the list followed by the cities of Sheffield, Birmingham and Leeds.

It’s always said that Londoners get the least sleep out of all the inhabitants of UK cities, however they don’t seem to find it hard to actually fall asleep once they finally get in to bed. Surprisingly, based on requests from those desperately searching for sleep advice the most, it’s historic Cambridge that tops the list, with the lovely seaside town of Brighton following it closely.

This is the list of the top 15 cities, from the most sleep-deprived to the least:

1. Cambridge
2. Brighton
3. Manchester
4. Newcastle
5. Cardiff
6. Leicester
7. Belfast
8. Bristol
9. Liverpool
10. Edinburgh
11. Glasgow
12. London
13. Sheffield
14. Birmingham
15. Leeds

Of course, when we review this information we must take into account the fact that there are many people who haven’t sought help or advice.

Snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) are common problems for many, particularly couples, where one partner disturbs the other’s sleep. It is widely accepted that 80% of sleep disorders such as OSA remain totally unrecognised and therefore remain dangerously untreated.

Many have discovered oral appliances that are a medically approved route for the prevention of the problem, and better sleep is a result. The benefits of this are also reflected in their health.

An example of this is diabetes. Prescriptions for type 2 diabetes have risen by a third in England in the last five years from 26 million to 35 million a year, according to NHS data and the hotspots for this match very closely to those of sleep disorders. Diabetes UK has done a lot of work around prevention and raising awareness of the condition and say to stop snoring is important.