Dietary Interventions for Sleep Health: Multi-Population and Mendelian Randomization Evidence on Sleep Outcomes and...

Area of Science:

• Nutritional Epidemiology
• Sleep Science
• Public Health

Background:

• Sleep disorders are a major public health concern with significant health consequences.
• Diet is a modifiable factor influencing sleep, but specific dietary patterns and food components' effects on sleep phenotypes remain unclear.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between three established dietary patterns (Mediterranean, DASH, AHEI) and distinct sleep outcomes.
• To explore the contributions of specific food groups and components to sleep phenotypes.
• To validate findings across diverse populations using multi-database analyses and Mendelian randomization.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 9040 US adults from NHANES, examining sleep duration, sufficiency, OSA, daytime sleepiness, and breathing cessation.
• International validation using the Global Dietary Database and country-level sleep apnea prevalence data.
• Two-sample Mendelian randomization to investigate causal associations between dietary components and sleep phenotypes.

Main Results:

• Higher Mediterranean Diet (MED) adherence correlated with longer sleep duration and sufficiency.
• Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) adherence showed the strongest protection against daytime sleepiness and breathing cessation episodes.
• Legumes, nuts, and whole grains demonstrated protective associations; specific fruits and vegetables had varied effects, with processed meats increasing OSA risk.

Conclusions:

• This study provides a comparative analysis of MED, DASH, and AHEI for various sleep phenotypes.
• Specific food components with genetic evidence causally influence sleep, supporting targeted dietary interventions.
• Findings integrated across multi-national datasets enhance generalizability, supporting evidence-based dietary strategies for improved sleep health.