Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 2, 2026
Multidisciplinary Approach to Obesity Management: A Case Report
Published on: May 30, 2025
Development of sleep patterns in children with obese and normal-weight parents
Lijuan Xiu1, Maria Hagströmer2, Linnea Bergqvist-Norén1
1Division of Pediatrics, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Insights
Children with higher obesity risk, indicated by parental weight, show poorer sleep quality and more varied sleep schedules. These sleep differences may stem from less optimal sleep hygiene within these families.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric sleep science
- Obesity research
- Family health studies
Background:
- Parental weight is a significant indicator of childhood obesity risk.
- Sleep patterns in early childhood are crucial for development and overall health.
- Understanding sleep variations is key to identifying potential health risks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate sleep development and characteristics in children based on parental obesity risk.
- To analyze weekday-weekend sleep variations in relation to obesity risk.
- To explore the influence of family factors on children's sleep patterns.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of 145 children, categorized by parental weight (low vs. high obesity risk).
- Sleep diaries used to track development from ages 1 to 2 years.
- Accelerometers used at age 2 to objectively measure sleep patterns and weekday-weekend variations.
Main Results:
- No significant differences in overall sleep development between groups from age 1 to 2.
- Children at high obesity risk exhibited prolonged sleep onset latency and lower sleep efficiency.
- Greater weekday-weekend variation in sleep offset, midpoint, and nap onset observed in the high-risk group.
Conclusions:
- Children at high obesity risk display unfavorable sleep characteristics and greater sleep schedule variability.
- These sleep differences, though subtle, may indicate suboptimal sleep hygiene in at-risk families.
- Early identification of sleep issues in relation to obesity risk is important for intervention.
Aim:
To study the sleep development and sleep characteristics in children at different obesity risks, based on parental weight, and also to explore their weekday-weekend sleep variations and associated family factors.
Methods:
A total of 145 children participating in a longitudinal obesity prevention project were included, of which 37 had normal-weight parents (low obesity risk), and 108 had overweight/obese parents (high obesity risk). Sleep diaries at ages 1 and 2 years were used to study sleep development in children at different obesity risks. Objectively assessed sleep using an accelerometer at 2 years of age was used to analyse weekday-weekend sleep variations.
Results:
There was no difference in sleep development from age 1 to age 2 among children at different obesity risks, but more children in the high-risk group had prolonged sleep onset latency and low sleep efficiency. At 2 years of age, children in the high-risk group had more weekday-weekend variation in sleep offset (mean difference 18 min, 95% confidence interval (CI) 4-33 min), midpoint of sleep (mean difference 14 min, 95% CI 3-25 min) and nap onset (mean difference 42 min, 95% CI 10-74 min) than children in the low-risk group, after adjusting for other family factors. However, no difference could be detected between groups in weekday-weekend variation in sleep duration.
Conclusions:
Unfavourable sleep characteristics, as well as more variation in sleep schedules, have been observed in children at high obesity risk. While the differences were relatively small, they may reflect the unfavourable sleep hygiene in families at high obesity risk.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
00:55Parental Care
01:24Obesity
01:27Parenting Styles
Authoritarian Parenting
This style is strict and controlling, with little room for open dialogue. Authoritarian parents demand obedience and often enforce rules with minimal warmth. Children raised this way may lack social skills and initiative, usually comparing themselves to others unfavorably.
Authoritative...
01:13Insufficient Sleep and Sleep Deprivation
Sleep deprivation is a more severe form of sleep loss...
01:28Relationship with Parents: Attachment
00:57Weighted Mean
For example, consider the number of goals scored in the matches of a tournament. While computing the average number of goals scored in the tournament, it may be more important to...