Effect of changes in sleeping behavior on skeletal muscle and fat mass: a retrospective cohort study

An association between sleep behaviors and muscle-fat mass is continuously interesting topic.

Based on the survey on sleep behaviors (quality and duration), the poor quality of sleep was evaluated when the subject did not feel satisfied after sleep, while the good quality was evaluated as they feel refreshed. A total of 19,770 participants were divided into the four groups according to changes in sleep quality: Good-to-Good (those who continuously maintained good quality), Good-to-Poor (those who reported initial good quality but subsequently reported a poor quality), Poor-to-Poor (those who continuously maintained poor quality), and Poor-to-Good (those who reported improved quality of sleep). As changes in skeletal muscle and fat mass index [kg/m²] were estimated by a validated prediction equation, multiple linear regression was used to calculate adjusted mean (adMean) of muscle and fat mass according to changes in sleep behavior.

When sleep duration decreased and quality of sleep deteriorated (from good to poor), fat mass index significantly increased (adMean: 0.087 for the Good-to-Good group and 0.210 for the Good-to-Poor group; p-value = 0.006). On the other hand, as the quality of sleep deteriorated, skeletal muscle mass more decreased despite the maintained sleep duration (adMean: -0.024 for the Good-to-Good group and - 0.049 for the Good-to-Poor group; p-value = 0.009).

Our results showed that changes in sleep quality and duration affect changes in muscle and fat mass. Thus, we suggest maintaining a good quality of sleep, even if sleep duration is reduced, to preserve muscle mass and inhibit the accumulation of fat.