Sleeping patterns and association with health and school-related outcomes and behaviors among adolescents

Abstract

Context Chronic sleep deprivation and other disorders have been shown to be strong determinants of poor well-being and health status in children and adolescents. Our first objective was to describe sleeping patterns among teenagers in French-speaking Belgium. In a second step, the associations of morning fatigue with health and school-related outcomes and behaviors were examined. Methods The study was based on data from the 2014 Health Behavior in School-Aged Children (HBSC) survey conducted in French-speaking Belgium. The sample consisted of more than 14,000 10–20-year-old adolescents from the fifth grade of primary school to the last grade of secondary school. Self-reported indicators pertaining to sleep were first described in relation to gender and school grade. Controlling for sociodemographic characteristics such as family affluence, family structure and migration status, associations of morning fatigue with health and school-related outcomes (self-rated health, overweight status, multiple recurrent symptoms, school appreciation and self-perceived performance at school) and behaviors (sleep duration, time spent in front of a screen, sport frequency, experience of drunkenness, family dinner frequency and energy drink consumption) were estimated using multivariable logistic regression models. Results Thirty percent of teenagers slept less than 8 hours per night during the week and 31.0% reported difficulties to sleep several times per week. Fifty-four percent experienced morning fatigue at least once a week. Girls, adolescents born abroad, those who reported a low family affluence and those living in a single family were more likely to report morning fatigue at least once a week. Morning fatigue was positively associated with poor self-rated health (OR = 2.60 [2.15–3.15]), school appreciation (OR = 2.26 [2.10–2.43]), self-perceived performance at school (OR = 1.58 [1.47–1.70]) and with multiple recurrent symptoms (OR = 2.96 [2.74–3.21]). Morning fatigue was more likely among adolescents who slept less than 8 hours per night (OR = 2.14 [1.91–2.39]), who spent 3 hours or more a day in front of a screen (OR = 1.53 [1.39–1.67]), who practiced sport less than twice a week (OR = 1.22 [1.23–1.33]), who consumed energy drinks at least once a week (OR = 1.14 [1.04–1.26]) and among those who did not have daily dinner with their family (OR = 1.27 [1.17–1.39]). Conclusions In this study, we found that deleterious sleeping patterns such as a short sleep duration were common among teenagers and may have adverse effects on health and well-being. Several modifiable behaviors have been pinpointed; taking them into account can help tackle this crucial public health issue.