Increased Sleep Duration Research Articles

Changing school start times: Impact on extracurricular activities and employment

Sufficient sleep duration is associated with student health and wellbeing, but early secondary school start times limit students' sleep opportunity. Despite recommendations that all middle and high schools adopt a healthy school start time policy, one barrier to policy implementation is concerns about the impact on student participation in activities and employment. This study examined student extracurricular activity participation and employment before and after the implementation of healthy secondary school start times. Approximately 24,000 students/year (grades 3–11) completed three annual surveys (pre-change, post-change, follow-up) measuring sleep-wake patterns, extracurricular activity participation, and employment. Following the implementation of an earlier school start time, before-school activity participation decreased for elementary school students, but after-school participation was similar across years. Following the implementation of later school start times, there was a small decrease in after-school activity participation for middle and high school students (~3–4%). Equally important, middle and high school students reported significantly increased sleep duration with later start times, regardless of participation in before- or after-school activities and employment. Study findings support the recommendation for healthy school start time policies.

How emotions induced by reading influence sleep quality in young and older adults

Objectives This study examined whether emotions induced by reading before sleep influence sleep quality in young and older adults. Method Sixty older adults (64–75 years) and 60 young adults (18–35 years) were randomly assigned to three conditions: positive reading, neutral reading, and control. The reading groups read a short story at bedtime, whereas the control group kept its routine. Participants completed measures of affective states, subjective sleep parameters, and self-reported sleep quality related to emotions over 7 consecutive days. Results Older adults reported much longer sleep latency and lower sleep efficiency than young adults. In both reading conditions, older adults reported reduced sleep latencies compared to the control group. In the positive reading condition, older adults reported an increased sleep duration compared to younger adults and the other conditions. Young and older adults in the positive condition showed better self-reported sleep quality than those in the neutral conditions, regardless of age. Conclusions Reading at bedtime appears to reduce older adults’ time to fall asleep and increase their sleep duration. Positive emotions induced by reading short stories at bedtime seem to be a sleep-promoting factor that improves bedtime and wake time in young and older adults.

Effect of maternal sleep on embryonic development

The concept of developmental origin of health and disease has ignited a search for mechanisms and health factors influencing normal intrauterine development. Sleep is a basic health factor with substantial individual variation, but its implication for early prenatal development remains unclear. During the embryonic period, the yolk sac is involved in embryonic nutrition, growth, hematopoiesis, and likely in fetal programming. Maternal body measures seem to influence its size in human female embryos. In this prospective, longitudinal observational study of 190 healthy women recruited before natural conception, we assessed the effect of prepregnant sleep duration (actigraphy) on the fetal crown-rump-length (CRL) and yolk sac size (ultrasound). All women gave birth to a live child. The prepregnancy daily sleep duration had an effect on the male yolk sac and CRL at the earliest measurement only (7 weeks). I.e., the yolk sac diameter decreased with increasing sleep duration (0.22 mm·h−1d−1, 95%CI [0.35–0.09], P < 0.01), and CRL increased (0.92 mm·h−1d−1, 95%CI [1.77–0.08], P = 0.03). Since there was no association at the second measurement (10 weeks), and in the group of female fetuses at any measure point, we suggest a sex- and time-dependent embryonic adaptation to sleep generated differences in the intrauterine environment in normal pregnancies.

Association between sleep duration and kidney stones in 34 190 American adults: A cross-sectional analysis of NHANES 2007-2018

ObjectiveTo explore the association between sleep duration and kidney stones among United States adults. Participants and methodsThis cross-sectional study is based on National Health and Nutrition Examination Surveys (NHANES) 2007-2018. Participants aged 20 years and above who self-reported history of kidney stones and sleep duration were included. Weighted proportions, multivariable analysis, and piecewise linear regression were used to evaluate the associations between sleep duration and kidney stones, while adjusting for gender, age, race, poverty income ratio, body mass index, education, marital status, trouble sleeping, smoking, alcohol and some comorbidities. Stratified logistic regression models were used in subgroup analyses and included all potential confounding factors above. ResultsOf the 34,190 participants, the overall weighted kidney stone prevalence was 9.73%, weighted mean age was 47.67 ± 16.99 years, and mean sleep duration was 7.15 ± 1.44 hours. The fully adjusted multivariable model demonstrated that people with normal (7-9 hours) and long (>9 hours) sleep duration had 17% and 20% lower odds of kidney stone prevalence than people with short sleep duration (<7 hours), respectively. However, fitting a smooth curve showed a nonlinear association between sleep duration and kidney stones. A piecewise linear regression model showed that one hour longer sleep duration was associated with 7% lower kidney stone prevalence for people with short sleep duration and with 22% higher prevalence for participants with long sleep duration. However, for people with normal sleep duration, increasing sleep duration was nonsignificantly associated with lower prevalence of kidney stones. Subgroup analysis showed no significant interaction effects. ConclusionsThere is a curvilinear relationship between sleep duration and kidney stones. Normal sleep duration is associated with lower prevalence of kidney stones than short sleep duration. This study provides new insight into potential strategies for the prevention and treatment of kidney stones.

Time spent in physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep: Associations with self-rated sleep quality in middle-aged and older adults

ObjectivesWe examined the associations of estimated allocations of time spent in physical activity, sedentary behavior and sleep with self-rated sleep quality. MethodsBetween 2011 and 2016, 1918 participants (mean age 71 ± 9 years, 51% women) from the population-based Rotterdam Study were included. Durations of light physical activity, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, sedentary behavior, and sleep were assessed by accelerometry, self-rated sleep quality with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index. Associations were assessed with compositional isotemporal substitution analyses. ResultsSpending 30 minutes more in sedentary behavior (adjusted mean difference in PSQI score: 0.21, 95% confidence interval [0.15; 0.28] or in light physical activity (adjusted mean difference in PSQI score: 0.25 [0.03; 0.46], and 30 minutes less in sleep, was associated with poorer sleep quality. ConclusionsOur findings suggest reducing sedentary behavior and increasing sleep duration might be a potential intervention target to improve sleep quality in this population of middle-aged and older adults.

Sleep, Affect, and Emotion Reactivity in First-Year College Students: A Daily Diary Study.

Sleep is an important factor in well-being, especially during the transition to college when academic and social commitments increase. Identifying factors that contribute to poor sleep (including short duration and increased variability in duration) can support development of interventions. Affect and emotion reactivity are factors that could contribute to sleep, and have not been studied in relation to sleep variables among first-year college students during their adjustment to the college environment. This adjustment might be difficult for some students, and therefore elicit affect fluctuations that contribute to poor sleep. Alternatively, sleep could contribute to daily affect. The present daily diary study examined bidirectional relations between daily sleep and affect, as well as between emotion reactivity and sleep (duration and variability) and affect (daily and overall variability) in first-year college students. First-year college students (n = 244; 86.1% female) completed a baseline survey including measures of emotion reactivity and anxiety and depressive symptoms, followed by 7days of a once-per-day diary, reporting on their affect and sleep duration. On days when individuals reported increased sleep duration, they also tended to experience greater positive affect the following day (p = .01). Those who experienced high levels of emotion reactivity also experienced more negative affect (p < .001) and negative affect variability (p < .001). Emotion reactivity might identify college students who experience more negative affect and are possibly at risk to develop mental health disorders. The importance of sleep health should continue to be emphasized to students as they transition to college.

17.2 Passive Phototherapy Increases Sleep Duration in Teens

The purpose of this clinical trial was to determine whether a passive application of bright light flashes during sleep, in conjunction with or independent of a behavioral intervention, enables earlier bedtimes and longer sleep duration in teens.

Why Don't We Sleep Enough? A Field Experiment among College Students

Abstract This study investigates the mechanisms affecting sleep choice and explores whether commitment devices and monetary incentives can be used to promote healthier sleep habits. To this end, we conducted a field experiment with college students, providing them incentives to sleep and collecting data from wearable activity trackers, surveys, and time-use diaries. Monetary incentives were effective in increasing sleep duration with some evidence of persistence after the incentive was removed. We uncover evidence of demand for commitment. Our results are consistent with partially sophisticated time-inconsistent preferences and overconfidence, and have implications for the effectiveness of information interventions on sleep choice.

Sleep Duration and Visceral Adipose Tissue: Linear and Nonlinear Mendelian Randomization Analyses.

Increasing evidence suggests that sleep is important for fat metabolism. However, the causal relationship between sleep duration and visceral adipose tissue (VAT) needs to be further clarified. This study investigated the linear and nonlinear causal association between sleep duration and VAT. This study used one-sample and two-sample Mendelian randomization MR). Single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with sleep duration at genome-wide significance were obtained from published genome-wide association studies. We also recalculated the correlation between each SNP and sleep duration in the UK Biobank. The associations of SNPs with predicted VAT (396 858 participants) were conducted in the UK Biobank. A total of 396 858 eligible participants (54.10% females, 57 ± 8 years old) were included in the study. The participants slept 7.17 ± 1.04 hours and stored 1.25 ± 0.88 kg of VAT on average. Genetically predicted sleep duration was significantly associated with VAT. For each 1-hour increase in genetically predicted sleep duration, the reduction in predicted VAT mass was 0.11 kg (P = 8.18E-16) in total, 0.17 kg (P = 3.30E-11) in men and 0.07 kg (P = 1.94E-06) in women. Nonlinear MR analyses demonstrated nonlinearity (L-shaped associations) between genetically predicted sleep duration and VAT in all participants, men, and women. Complementary analyses provided confirmative evidence of the adverse effects of genetically predicted short sleep duration on the increased VAT. In contrast, no clear evidence on the causal effect of genetically predicted long sleep duration on VAT mass was found. The causal association of sleep duration with VAT was L-type. Our findings support that short sleep duration is a risk factor for increasing VAT, thus reinforcing the probability that increasing sleep duration may decrease VAT.

A Naturalistic Actigraphic Assessment of Changes in Adolescent Sleep, Light Exposure, and Activity Before and During COVID-19.

The majority of high school-aged adolescents obtain less than the recommended amount of sleep per night, in part because of imposed early school start times. Utilizing a naturalistic design, the present study evaluated changes in objective measurements of sleep, light, and physical activity before (baseline) and during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic (during COVID-19) in a group of US adolescents. Sixteen adolescents (aged 15.9 ± 1.2 years, 68.8% female) wore an actigraphy monitor for 7 consecutive days during an in-person week of school before the pandemic (October 2018-February 2020) and again during the pandemic when instruction was performed virtually (May 2020). Delayed weekday sleep onset times of 1.66 ± 1.33 h (p < 0.001) and increased sleep duration of 1 ± 0.87 h (p < 0.001) were observed during COVID-19 compared with baseline. Average lux was significantly higher during COVID-19 compared with baseline (p < 0.001). Weekday physical activity parameters were not altered during COVID-19 compared with baseline, except for a delay in the midpoint of the least active 5 h (p value = 0.044). This analysis provides insight into how introducing flexibility into the traditional school schedule might influence sleep in adolescents.

Comparison of health behaviors of adult women in Korea before and during the COVID-19 pandemic: secondary analysis of the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2019-2020.

This study investigated the changes in the health-related behaviors of adult women in Korea during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Data from the eighth Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2019- 2020) were analyzed. The participants were 4,848 women aged 19 to 64 years in 2019 and 2020. Data analysis using the complex sampling design was performed using SPSS 20.1. Positive changes during the pandemic compared to before the pandemic in Korean adult women were found for improved subjective oral health perceptions (odds ratio [OR], 1.77; p&lt;.001), increased moderate-intensity exercise in work and leisure activities (OR, 1.75; p&lt;.001 and OR; 1.29, p=.004), and a decrease in secondhand smoke exposure at the workplace and in public places (OR, 0.64; p=.004 and OR, 0.60; p&lt;.001). However, the following negative health behavior changes were found: decreased frequency of walking 5 days a week (OR, 0.81; p=.011) and an increase in unhealthy daytime sleep durations (OR, 1.40; p=006). Compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic, Korean adult women perceived their subjective dental health more positively during the COVID-19 pandemic, decreased their exposure to secondhand smoke at work and in public places, decreased walking, and increased sleep duration during the week. Since this study only compared data between 1 year before and after the start of the pandemic, it is necessary to investigate a longer period of time in the future. A future study should attempt to identify the factors related to changes in health behaviors caused by the pandemic.

Nonpharmacological Interventions to Lengthen Sleep Duration in Healthy Children

Adequate sleep duration is necessary for many aspects of child health, development, and well-being, yet sleep durations for children are declining, and effective strategies to increase sleep in healthy children remain to be elucidated. To determine whether nonpharmaceutical interventions to improve sleep duration in healthy children are effective and to identify the key components of these interventions. CENTRAL, MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, Web of Science Core collection, ClinicalTrials.gov, and WHO trials databases were searched from inception to November 15, 2021. Randomized clinical trials of interventions to improve sleep duration in healthy children were independently screened by 2 researchers. A total of 28 478 studies were identified. Data were processed according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) reporting guideline. Random-effects meta-analytic models were used to estimate pooled effect sizes. Difference in sleep duration, measured in minutes. A total of 13 539 child participants from 45 randomized clinical trials were included. Of these, 6897 (50.9%) were in the intervention group and 6642 (49.1%) in the control group, and the mean age ranged from 18 months to 19 years. Pooled results indicate that sleep interventions were associated with 10.5 minutes (95% CI, 5.6-15.4) longer nocturnal sleep duration. There was substantial variation between trials. Sources of variation that were not associated with the study effect size included age group, whether the population was identified as having a sleep problem or being at a socioeconomic disadvantage (eg, coming from a low-income family or area), method of assessment of sleep duration (objective vs subjective), location of intervention delivery (home vs school), whether interventions were delivered in person or used parental involvement, whether behavioral theory was used, environmental change, or had greater or lower intensity. Interventions that included earlier bedtimes were associated with a 47-minute sleep extension (95% CI, 18.9-75.0; 3 trials) compared with remaining studies (7.4 minutes; 95% CI, 2.9-11.8; 42 trials) (P = .006 for group difference). Trials of shorter duration (6 months or less) had larger effects. Interventions focused on earlier bedtimes may offer a simple, pragmatic, effective way to meaningfully increase sleep duration that could have important benefits for child health.

Behavioural studies on crude Ethanol leaf extract of Cadaba farinosa Forssk. in mice

Cadaba farinosa Forssk. (Capparaceae) is found all over the world, mostly in tropical and subtropical areas. It is used to treat pain, dysentery, rheumatism, cough, and fever, as well as an antidote and in the treatment of neurological disorders. In mice, the median lethal dose (LD50) of Crude Ethanol leaf Extract (CEE) of Cadaba farinosa was found to be 2154.1 mg/kg body weight. The presence of alkaloids, anthraquinones, carbohydrates, cardiac glycosides, flavonoids, glycosides, saponins, and tannins was discovered during a preliminary phytochemical analysis of the dark gummy mass crude extract. The CEE was then put through pharmacological testing on mice. In mice, diazepam-induced sleep, beam walking, and hole-board assays were used to investigate behavioral activities. CEE of Cadaba farinosa had no effect on the onset of sleep in mice when given at the tested doses of diazepam. In contrast, it significantly increased sleep duration at all doses tested (75 mg/kg p 0.001, 150 mg/kg p≤0.05, and 300 mg/kg p≤0.01). The CEE significantly (p≤0.01) increased the number of foot slips in the Beam walking assay at a dose of 150 mg/kg. Similarly, diazepam at 0.25 mg/kg increased the number of foot slips significantly (p≤0.001). The extract at a dose of 300 mg/kg and diazepam increased the time required to complete the task significantly (p≤0.05). At 150 mg/kg (p 0.01) and 300 mg/kg (p≤0.05), the hole-board experiment significantly reduced the number of head dips. In contrast, the standard drug (diazepam) had no discernible effect on the number of head dips. These findings suggest that CEE and Diazepam at the highest dose significantly affected the behaviour of mice in the beam walking assay. Thus, the extract showed no activity on the onset of sleep but significantly prolong duration of sleep at the tested doses. The CEE significantly produced a decrease in the exploratory behavioural pattern, indicative of the fact that CEE possesses sedative property.

Evaluating the impact of a sleep health education and a personalised smartphone application on sleep, productivity and healthcare utilisation among employees: results of a randomised clinical trial

ObjectivesWe evaluated an online Sleep Health and Wellness (SHAW) programme paired with dayzz, a personalised sleep training programme deployed via smartphone application (dayzz app) that promotes healthy sleep and treatment...

Effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on sleep quality in children and adolescents: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

SummaryWe synthesise the literature on the potential influence of the COVID‐19 pandemic on sleep quality in children and adolescents. The search identified studies that examined the relationship between sleep quality and disorders during the COVID‐19 pandemic. It began in May 2021 and has had two updates with the last in January 2022. The databases used were LILACS, PubMed, and EMBASE. Random effects models were performed to explore heterogeneity between studies. Data were presented as continuous variables (mean value and standard deviation) to perform a meta‐analysis. Twenty‐nine studies from 16 countries were identified: Nine had children and eight had adolescents. The overall quality of the studies ranged from high (27.6%) to medium (65.5%) and low (6.9%). Eight studies were eligible for meta‐analysis. There was an increase in sleep duration during the pandemic when compared with the previous period 0.33 (95%CI −0.07; 0.60) (p < 0.001) and late bedtime 0.78 (95%CI −0.33; 1.22) (p < 0.001). A trend toward reduced sleep efficiency was also detected 0.54 (95%CI −0.75; −0.33) p = 0.20. Parents’ reports of increased use of screen media/electronic devices were associated with worse sleep quality. The results suggest an influence of the pandemic on sleep characteristics such as increased sleep duration, late bedtimes, and poor sleep quality. These alterations were related to changes in family routines during this period.

Intrinsic maturation of sleep output neurons regulates sleep ontogeny in Drosophila

The maturation of sleep behavior across a lifespan (sleep ontogeny) is an evolutionarily conserved phenomenon. Mammalian studies have shown that in addition to increased sleep duration, early life sleep exhibits stark differences compared with mature sleep with regard to sleep states. How the intrinsic maturation of sleep output circuits contributes to sleep ontogeny is poorly understood. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster exhibits multifaceted changes to sleep from juvenile to mature adulthood. Here, we use a non-invasive probabilistic approach to investigate the changes in sleep architecture in juvenile and mature flies. Increased sleep in juvenile flies is driven primarily by a decreased probability of transitioning to wake and characterized by more time in deeper sleep states. Functional manipulations of sleep-promoting neurons in the dorsal fan-shaped body (dFB) suggest that these neurons differentially regulate sleep in juvenile and mature flies. Transcriptomic analysis of dFB neurons at different ages and a subsequent RNAi screen implicate the genes involved in dFB sleep circuit maturation. These results reveal that the dynamic transcriptional states of sleep output neurons contribute to the changes in sleep across the lifespan.

Causal Association of Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Lifestyle Behaviors With Peripheral Artery Disease: A Mendelian Randomization Approach.

BackgroundWe investigated the causal associations between the genetic liability to cardiovascular and lifestyle risk factors and peripheral artery disease (PAD), using a Mendelian randomization approach.Methods and ResultsWe performed a 2‐sample inverse‐variance weighted Mendelian randomization analysis, multiple sensitivity analyses to assess pleiotropy and multivariate Mendelian randomization analyses to assess mediating/confounding factors. European‐ancestry genomic summary data (P<5×10−8) for type 2 diabetes, lipid‐fractions, smoking, alcohol and coffee consumption, physical activity, sleep, and education level were selected. Genetic associations with PAD were extracted from the Million‐Veteran‐Program genome‐wide association studies (cases=31 307, controls=211 753, 72% European‐ancestry) and the GoLEAD‐SUMMIT genome‐wide association studies (11 independent genome‐wide association studies, European‐ancestry, cases=12 086, controls=449 548). Associations were categorized as robust (Bonferroni‐significant (P<0.00294), consistent over PAD‐cohorts/sensitivity analyses), suggestive (P value: 0.00294–0.05, associations in 1 PAD‐cohort/inconsistent sensitivity analyses) or not present. Robust evidence for genetic liability to type 2 diabetes, smoking, insomnia, and inverse associations for higher education level with PAD were found. Suggestive evidence for the genetic liability to higher low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, triglyceride‐levels, alcohol consumption, and inverse associations for high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, and increased sleep duration were found. No associations were found for physical activity and coffee consumption. However, effects fully attenuated for low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides after correcting for apoB, and for insomnia after correcting for body mass index and lipid‐fractions. Nonsignificant attenuation by potential mediators was observed for education level and type 2 diabetes.ConclusionsDetrimental effects of smoking and type 2 diabetes, but not of low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol and triglycerides, on PAD were confirmed. Lower education level and insomnia were identified as novel risk factors for PAD; however, complete mediation for insomnia and incomplete mediation for education level by downstream risk factors was observed.

The Association between Sleep Pattern with Lipid Profile and Obesity among Adults in Yazd: Cross-Sectional Analysis of Shahedieh Cohort Study

Background: Lifestyle changes, such as changes in sleep patterns and insufficient sleep have led to an increase in obesity and hyperlipidemia. The present study was conducted to investigate the association between abnormal lipid profile and obesity with sleep pattern among adult in Yazd adults in Shahedieh cohort study.&#x0D; Methods: This analytic cross-sectional study was carried out on the data of the enrollment phase of Shahedieh cohort study conducted in Yazd Greater Area during 2015-2017. In this study, all adults aged 35-70 years from Shahedieh, Zarch, and Ashekzar cities were investigated. The data used in this study included demographic and sleep variables, as well as triglyceride (TG), cholesterol (TC), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c).&#x0D; Results: The results showed that 4765 participants were male, and 4768 were female, and most of the them were overweight (42.4%) or obese (34.2%). The results showed that long-term sleep (&gt; 8 hours at night) is correlated with high serum TC (P = 0.009) and TG (P = 0.009). Sleep latency is related with an increase in TC (r=0.03, P = 0.004), TG (r=0.04, P = 0.001), and LDL-c (r = 0.04, P = 0.001). Moreover, the duration of daytime sleep increases by increasing TG (r = 0.06, P = 0.001) and decreasing HDL-c (r = -0.07, P = 0.001). The results also showed that TG were significantly higher in people with periodic limb movement in sleep (P = 0.02). The number of people who used sleeping pills increased by increasing TG (P = 0.01) and body mass index (BMI) decreased by increasing sleep duration (P = 0.21).&#x0D; Conclusion: The results of this study showed that long-term sleep increases TC and TG. The findings showed a correlation between long sleep duration and decreased BMI.

Sleep-promoting activity of lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) rhizome water extract via GABAA receptors

Context The sleep-promoting activity of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. (Nymphaeaceae) alkaloids in leaves or seeds are well known. However, the sleep-promoting activity of the lotus rhizome (LE), which is used mainly as food, has not yet been evaluated. Objective We investigated the sleep-promoting activity of LE water extract. Materials and methods Institute of Cancer Research (ICR) mice (n = 8) were subject to a pentobarbital-induced sleep test to assess changes in sleep latency and duration following the administration of LE (80–150 mg/kg). In addition, electroencephalography analysis was performed to determine the sleep quality after LE treatment as well as the sleep recovery effect of LE using a caffeine-induced insomnia SD rat model. Real-time PCR and western blot analysis were performed to investigate the expression of neurotransmitter receptors, and the GABAA receptor antagonists were used for receptor binding analysis. Results An oral administration of 150 mg/kg LE significantly increased sleep duration by 24% compared to the control. Furthermore, LE increased nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep by increasing theta and delta powers. In the insomnia model, LE increased sleep time by increasing NREM sleep. Moreover, treatment with picrotoxin and flumazenil decreased the sleep time by 33% and 23%, respectively, indicating an involvement of the GABAA receptor in the sleep-enhancing activity of LE. The expression of GABAA receptors and the concentration of GABA in the brain were increased by LE. Discussion and conclusions The results suggest that the sleep-promoting activity of LE was via the GABAA receptor. Collectively, these data show that LE may promote sleep.

Sex differences among endurance athletes in the pre-race relationships between sleep, and perceived stress and recovery

ABSTRACT This study examined sex differences among endurance athletes in pre-race relationships between sleep, and perceived stress and recovery. Thirty-six athletes completed the Short Recovery and Stress Scale, and had sleep monitored via actigraphy, over four consecutive days prior to an ultra-marathon. Overall, compared with males, females had shorter wake after sleep onset (mean ± SD, 50 ± 23 vs 65 ± 23 min, p = .04) and lower emotional balance (3.9 ± 1.1 vs 4.8 ± 1.1 arbitrary units, p = .001). The day before the race, females scored higher for all stress-related items (p < 0.05). Among females, higher scores for emotional balance (β = −31 min, p = .01) and negative emotional state (β = −21 min, p < .001) were associated with reduced sleep duration. Among males, higher scores for overall stress were associated with increased sleep duration (β = 22 min, p = .01). Across all athletes, longer sleep duration was associated with improved overall recovery (β = 0.003 arbitrary units, p = .02). Females experienced greater pre-race stress than males, and their sleep duration was associated with emotional factors. The SRSS may help identify female athletes at risk of sleep difficulties prior to competition.