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Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study
09:36

Assessment of Child Anthropometry in a Large Epidemiologic Study

Published on: February 2, 2017

Relationship of sleep parameters, child psychological functioning, and parenting stress to obesity status among

Carolyn E Ievers-Landis1, Amy Storfer-Isser, Carol Rosen

  • 1Division of Developmental, Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, University Hospitals, Case Medical Center, Case Center for Transdisciplinary Research in Energetics and Cancer, Cleveland, Ohio 44106-6038, USA. Carolyn.landis@uhhospitals.org

Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics : JDBP
|June 17, 2008
PubMed

Insights

Shorter sleep duration in children significantly increases obesity risk by 41% per hour, even after accounting for behavioral and parenting factors. This association was stronger in boys.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Health
  • Obesity Research
  • Sleep Science

Background:

  • Pediatric obesity is a growing concern with links to adult chronic illness.
  • Previous studies on pediatric obesity often overlooked child psychological/behavioral factors and parenting stress.
  • Insufficient sleep is a potential, under-researched contributor to childhood obesity.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the association between sleep duration and obesity in children aged 8-11 years.
  • To examine the influence of child psychological/behavioral functioning and parenting stress on this relationship.
  • To determine if demographic and socioeconomic factors confound the sleep-obesity link.

Main Methods:

  • Cross-sectional study of 819 children aged 8-11 years.
  • Data collected on parent-reported sleep duration, obesity status, child psychological/behavioral functioning, and parenting stress.
  • Statistical analyses included unadjusted and adjusted models, considering demographics and neighborhood income.

Main Results:

  • A significant 41% increase in obesity odds for every 1-hour reduction in child sleep duration.
  • Median neighborhood income was also significantly related to obesity status.
  • Child psychological/behavioral functioning and parenting stress were linked to sleep duration but not directly to obesity; adjusting for them did not alter the sleep-obesity association.
  • Gender-specific analysis revealed a significant association between sleep duration and obesity in boys, but not in girls.

Conclusions:

  • Shorter sleep duration is independently associated with a higher likelihood of obesity in children, persisting after controlling for behavioral and parenting factors.
  • The findings highlight sleep duration as a critical factor in pediatric obesity.
  • Gender-specific differences in the sleep-obesity relationship warrant further investigation, aligning with adolescent study findings.
Abstract

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