0077 Exploring Psychological and Behavioral Factors with Sleep Health in Latinx Children

Abstract

Abstract Introduction While sleep health is comprised of multiple dimensions, extant research tends to investigate single elements of sleep, such as sleep duration or sleep quality. The current study aimed to explore whether psychological and behavioral factors were associated with a multidimensional sleep health score as well as if sleep health was related to adiposity among Latinx children. Methods A community sample of 100 Latinx 10-to-12-year-olds were recruited from Los Angeles and Orange Counties (California, US). Psychological (perceived stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms), sleep hygiene and chronotype (lower scores indicate more adaptive sleep hygiene and eveningness, respectively) measures were collected with surveys. Diet data (sugar, fiber) was collected by two 24-hour recalls. Adiposity (BMI percentile, percent body fat) was assessed via bioimpedance scale. Sleep actigraphy (1 week) provided objective sleep dimension data. A composite score of sleep health across 6 dimensions (regularity, satisfaction, alertness, timing, efficiency, and duration) was constructed (0=better to 6=poorer). Hierarchical linear regressions, controlling for demographics (age, gender, monthly household income), assessed associations for each set of factors. Results The mean sleep health score was 2.08±1.41; 31.6% of Latinx children in our sample had poor sleep health (using median cut-point of 2). Poorer sleep hygiene (std. β=-.235, p=.037) and higher income (std. β=.244, p=.022) were significantly associated with poorer sleep health, while eveningness was marginally related (std. β=-.210, p=.068). Lower fiber intake (std. β=-.235, p=.037) and higher income (std. β=-.245, p=.038) were significantly associated with poorer sleep health. Psychological and adiposity variables were not associated with sleep health after controlling for demographics. Conclusion This study shows the prevalence and correlates of poor sleep health in Latinx children, an understudied group at risk for several health disparities. Better sleep hygiene was related to better sleep health. Several findings diverge from the literature based on single dimensions of sleep in general samples. Higher SES was related to poorer sleep health. Psychological factors and adiposity were not related to sleep health. A novel finding was that higher fiber intake was related to better sleep health. Additional research is needed to better understand factors related to multidimensional sleep health in Latinx children. Support (If Any) This work was supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences under Award Numbers UL1GM118979, TL4GM118980, and RL5GM118978 as well as the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute Award Number 1K01HL140283.