Relation between sleep duration, overweight, and metabolic syndrome in Korean adolescents

The increasing prevalence of obesity has been paralleled by a trend of reduced sleep duration. Sleep is considered a modulator of neuroendocrine function. The aim of this study was to determine the relation between sleep duration, overweight, and metabolic syndrome in Korean adolescents.

This study was based on data from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (KNHANES) IV. Data from 1187 adolescents aged 12-18 years were included in the analysis. Subjects were classified according to self-reported sleep duration: ≤ 5 h, 6-7 h, 8-9 h, and ≥ 10 h. We analysed the association between sleep duration, overweight, and metabolic syndrome after adjustment for potential confounding variables. Body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were higher in subjects who slept ≤ 5 h, and triglyceride level was higher in subjects who slept ≥ 10 h. According to logistic regression analysis, subjects who slept ≤ 5 h had a higher risk of overweight (odds ratio (OR) 2.04, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.17-3.57) and elevated blood pressure (BP) (OR 2.11, 95% CI 1.22-3.65). We did not find any association between sleep duration and metabolic syndrome. Subjects who slept ≥ 10 h had a higher risk of hypertriglyceridemia (OR 2.17, 95% CI 1.14-4.13).

Short sleep duration was associated with overweight in adolescents. Although there was no association between sleep duration and metabolic syndrome, short sleep duration was associated with elevated BP and long sleep duration was associated with hypertriglyceridemia.