A recent study being presented at the SLEEP 2024 annual meeting has discovered a connection between circadian misalignment, which is common among teenagers, and their consumption of carbohydrates as well as their sedentary behavior.
The study found that adolescents with a later sleep schedule tended to consume more carbohydrates, and this link was partially attributed to irregular sleep patterns. In addition, a later sleep schedule was associated with higher levels of sedentary behavior.Increased sedentary behavior is linked to inadequate diet and physical activity, even after accounting for factors like demographics, sleep disorders, and insufficient sleep.
“It’s normal for sleep schedules to be delayed during puberty and adolescence, but some teens delay their sleep schedule to the point where they are out of sync with the day-night cycle, their social commitments, and responsibilities,” explained lead researcher Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, who is a clinical psychologist and professor at Penn State College of Medicine in Hershey, Pennsylvania. “Our findings suggest that this lack of alignment may contribute to poor diet and lack of physical activity.”
Additionally, this contributes to the growing problem of obesity and poor heart health.”
The research included 377 teenagers from the Penn State Child Cohort who underwent at least three nights of at-home actigraphy and one night of in-lab polysomnography to determine their sleep midpoint and regularity. Their physical activity was also tracked using actigraphy, and their carbohydrate intake was assessed through a survey.
According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, sleep is crucial for good health, and healthy sleep involves proper duration, high quality, appropriate timing and regularity, and the absence of sleep disturbances.Sleep disorders are common among adolescents and young adults, often characterized by a delayed sleep schedule that is later than the socially acceptable timing. According to Fernandez-Mendoza, it is important for the health of adolescents to have a proper circadian alignment.
Fernandez-Mendoza stated that interventions targeting poor dietary choices and sedentarism in youth should consider the circadian misalignment of the sleep-wake cycle and its associated variability in sleep duration.
The study received support from grants provided by the National Institutes of Health and the research abstract was recently published.The findings will be featured in an online supplement of the journal Sleep and will be shared at SLEEP 2024 in Houston on Wednesday, June 5th.
