Association Between Sleep Duration, Food Consumption Patterns and Obesity Among Adolescents in Qatar

Abstract

Background: Recent research suggests that sleep duration contributes towards developing unhealthy dietary habits which can lead to obesity. Further study in this field can provide a new direction in addressing this epidemic. Objective: To examine the association between sleep duration, food consumption pattern, and obesity in adolescents in Qatar. Hypothesis: Sleep duration and unhealthy dietary pattern may be positively correlated to obesity. Methods: This is a cross-sectional, descriptive and analytical study including 1161 adolescents aged 14-19 years from a representative sample of independent secondary schools in the state of Qatar. Validated questionnaire was used to collect data on sleep duration and frequency of intake of foods. Sleep duration was classified as short (< 6 hrs), sufficient (7-8 hrs) and long (> 9 hrs). Anthropometric indicators included body weight, height and waist circumference (WC) that were measured using standardized procedures. General obesity was defined according to International Obesity Task Force (IOTF) ageand gender-specific body mass index (BMI) reference values. Agespecific cutoff values for WC were used to define abdominal obesity. Factor loading matrix was used to categorize healthy and unhealthy foods. The association between the study variables was assessed using multiple regression analysis. Results: The mean frequency of food consumption was lower for students of shorter sleep duration regardless of the day of the week. Students who reported long sleep duration had higher mean frequency of consumption of unhealthy food (fast food, French fries, cakes/donuts, candy/chocolates, sugar-sweetened beverages). Females showed an unhealthier eating pattern as compared to males. Multiple regression analysis revealed that as the WC and BMI increased, consumption of healthy eating pattern decreased by 25% and 10 % respectively (p<0.001) Conclusion: Lack of sufficient sleep and decreased consumption of healthy foods have an association with increased risk of being obese among adolescents