Hours of sleep and associated factors in college students during the COVID-19 pandemic

Sleep alterations are common in college students, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sociodemographic factors may predict these alterations in this population.

To identify the sociodemographic factors and health characteristics associated with the number of hours of sleep of college students during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This was a cross-sectional study carried out with 244 university students from a multicampi public university in the State of Bahia, Northeast Brazil. Data collection was performed online and participants answered a specific questionnaire to assess sleep hours, sociodemographic and health variables.

Significant associations were observed between hours of sleep and older students (odds ratio adjusted -ORaj: 3.75; 95% Confidence Interval -CI: 1.81-7.75; p < 0.01), attending the final semesters (ORaj: 1.85; 95% CI: 1.05-3.25; p < 0.03), and who reported having some disease (ORaj: 2.18; 95% CI: 1.05-4.50; p < 0.03) with greater chances of getting less sleep. However, those who used tobacco (ORaj: 0.08; 95% CI: 0.01-0.45; p < 0.001) were likely to have more hours of sleep per night.

Sleep restriction was common among participating college students, which has likely intensified due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its restrictions. This encourages specific public health actions, contemplating the health and hours of sleep of this population.