Effects of Sleep Quality on Diet and Physical Activity in Adolescents from Low-income Families
Haffner, Kristin
Citations
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the interaction of sleep quality on food energy intake, Healthy Eating Index (HEI) scores, physical activity, and screen time in low-income adolescents. Methods: This study included 78 adolescents who completed the Tulsa 100 survey. The adolescents were randomly selected from the Kendall-Whittier or Eugene Fields neighborhoods of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Sleep quality was determined using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), dietary intake was measured by the Automated Self-Administered 24-hour Recall (ASA24), diet quality was determined by HEI scores which were calculated from the ASA24 results, and self-reported physical activity and screen time were included in the Tulsa 100 questionnaire. Pearson�s r correlations were used to determine if sleep quality was associated with food energy intake, HEI scores, physical activity, and screen time. A multiple linear regression was used to determine which food items had the greatest affect on the HEI scores. Frequencies, Independent t-tests and Chi Square were used as appropriate. Results: Correlation between PSQI and HEI indicated that poor sleep quality was related to poor diet quality. PSQI was not significantly related to total food energy, physical activity or screen time. Total fruit, non-whole grain, and poly-unsaturated fatty acids were deemed the top 3 most important predictors of HEI scores in the multiple linear regression analysis of HEI. Conclusions: Because better sleep quality was associated with a better diet quality as determined by HEI scores and lower BMI�s, sleep is an important factor to consider when educating low-income adolescents on a healthy lifestyle. Additionally, to raise the HEI scores for this population, the focus should be on increasing total fruit and poly-unsaturated fatty acids while limiting non-whole grains.