It may come as no surprise to all the mothers out there, but new U.S. research has found that living with children affects a woman's sleep more than it does a man's.

According to a preliminary study released on Sunday, which examined data from a nationwide telephone survey of 5,805 men and women, having children in the house leaves women more sleep deprived than men.

For the study participants were asked how long they slept, with seven to nine hours per day considered optimum and less than six hours considered insufficient.

They were also asked how many days they felt tired in the past month.

After looking at other possible factors linked to sleep deprivation, including race, education, marital status, number of children in the household, income, body mass index, exercise, employment and snoring, the results showed that among the 2,908 women under 45 the only factor associated with getting enough sleep was having children in the house, with each child increasing the odds of insufficient sleep by nearly 50 per cent.

The results team also found that for women under the age of 45, 48 per cent of those with children reported getting at least seven hours of sleep, compared to 62 per cent of women without children.

In addition, living with children not only reduced how long younger women slept, but also increased how often they felt tired, with younger women with children reporting feeling tired 14 days per month, on average, compared to 11 days for younger women without children in the house.

However having children in the house was not linked to how long men slept.

"I think these findings may bolster those women who say they feel exhausted," said study author Kelly Sullivan, "Our study found not only are they not sleeping long enough, they also report feeling tired throughout the day."

"Getting enough sleep is a key component of overall health and can impact the heart, mind and weight," continued Sullivan, "It's important to learn what is keeping people from getting the rest they need so we can help them work toward better health."

The study's findings will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's 69th Annual Meeting in Boston, Apr. 22-28.