Associations of Sleep Duration and Regularity With Level of Obesity Among Youth in a Weight Loss Program

• Published in: Translational issues in psychological science 2015-03, Vol.1 (1), p.45-56
• Main Authors: Chuang, Janet, Fehr, Karla K, Ievers-Landis, Carolyn E, Narasimhan, Sumana, Uli, Naveen, O'Riordan, Mary Ann
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Female; Human; Male; Obesity; Pediatrics; Sleep; Sleep Wake Cycle; Weight Control
• ISSN: 2332-2136; 2332-2179
• DOI: 10.1037/tps0000012

This study evaluated the association of sleep duration and irregularity (shifts in sleep duration and wake/bedtimes from weekday to weekend) with baseline level of obesity in youth enrolled in a weight management program. The 288 youth ranged in age from 6 to 18 years old; 61.1% were female, and 52.5% were Caucasian. In adjusted models, shorter sleep duration was significantly related to higher BMI z scores. Two measures of sleep irregularity, bedtime and wake-time shift, were also each related to baseline BMI z scores, but these relationships did not remain significant in adjusted models. In gender-stratified adjusted regression models, shorter sleep duration and greater wake-time shift for females were significantly associated with higher BMI z scores. None of the sleep variables were significantly related to BMI z scores for males in adjusted models. Taken together, the results of this study support the relationship between sleep duration and regularity with level of obesity in a racially diverse sample of predominantly obese, treatment-seeking youth.