Abstract
Consumption of a Mediterranean diet has been linked to better sleep health in older, European populations. However, whether this dietary pattern is predictive of sleep quality in US women, a group prone to poor sleep, is unknown. This prospective cohort study of 432 US women (20–76 y; 60% racial/ethnic minority) evaluated whether compliance with a Mediterranean diet at baseline predicted sleep quality at 1-y follow-up. Alternate Mediterranean (aMed) diet scores and habitual sleep quality were computed from the validated Block Brief Food Frequency Questionnaire and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), respectively. Linear regression models evaluated prospective associations of the aMed diet pattern and its components with measures of sleep quality, after adjustment for age, BMI, race/ethnicity, education, and health insurance status. Higher baseline aMed scores were associated with lower PSQI scores (β = −0.30 ± 0.10, p < 0.01), indicative of better sleep quality, higher sleep efficiency (β = 1.20 ± 0.35, p < 0.001), and fewer sleep disturbances (β = −0.30 ± 0.12, p = 0.01) at 1-y. Fruit and vegetable consumption also predicted lower PSQI scores, higher sleep efficiency and fewer sleep disturbances (all p < 0.05). Higher legume intake predicted better sleep efficiency (β = 1.36 ± 0.55, p = 0.01). These findings suggest that adherence to a Mediterranean diet pattern should be evaluated as a strategy to promote sleep quality in US women.
Highlights
Sleep and diet are key determinants of cardiovascular health (CVH) and are intricately related to one another [1,2]
We provide some of the earliest evidence that greater concordance with an Alternate Mediterranean (aMed) diet pattern predicts better sleep quality in a diverse sample of US women
This study represents, to our knowledge, the first prospective evaluation of the association of the components of an aMed diet with measures of sleep quality, demonstrating that higher intakes of nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables, legumes, unsaturated fat, and plant-based proteins are related to better future sleep quality
Summary
Sleep and diet are key determinants of cardiovascular health (CVH) and are intricately related to one another [1,2]. Emerging data indicate that the association between sleep and diet is likely to be bidirectional [1,3]. On one hand, it is well-established that changes in sleep duration and quality can Nutrients 2020, 12, 2830; doi:10.3390/nu12092830 www.mdpi.com/journal/nutrients. Effects of short and poor sleep on food intake and diet quality have been demonstrated via mechanisms including greater sensitivity to food reward and changes in appetite hormones [8]. Nascent data demonstrate that dietary patterns may influence sleep parameters; a role for diet in sleep health has been postulated [1,3,8]
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