Sociodemographic correlates of daytime napping in Canadian preschoolers

To examine the sociodemographic and sleep-related characteristics of Canadian children aged 3 to 4 years who napped compared with those who did not.

This cross-sectional study used data from the 2023 Canadian Health Survey on Children and Youth (CHSCY), a nationally representative survey. Parents of children aged 3 to 4 years (n=6291) reported napping status, nap duration, nighttime sleep characteristics, and sociodemographic factors. Weighted proportions and chi-square tests compared nappers and non-nappers. Multivariable logistic regression identified sociodemographic characteristics independently associated with daytime napping.

Napping prevalence was lower among 4-year-olds than 3-year-olds (27.6% vs. 48.7%, P<.001). Children who napped were more likely to be from non-White ethnoracial backgrounds, live in lower-income households, and have landed immigrant status, whereas non-nappers were more often White, from higher-income households, and Canadian-born. After multivariable adjustment, Black and Arab/West Asian children had higher odds of daytime napping, whereas Indigenous children had lower odds than White children. Immigration status was no longer independently associated with daytime napping. No significant differences were observed by gender, parental education, or perceived general or mental health. Non-nappers were more likely to obtain at least 10 hours of nighttime sleep (3 years: 95.4% vs. 79.4%, P<.001; 4 years: 90.1% vs. 76.7%, P<.001) and, at age 3, to fall asleep within 10 minutes at night (55.3% vs. 39.7%, P<.001). Among 4-year-olds, nappers were more likely to report no or almost never experiencing nighttime awakenings (57.3% vs. 44.3%, P<.001). Mean nap duration remained stable at approximately 2.4 to 2.5 hours.

Daytime napping in Canadian preschoolers varies by developmental stage and sociodemographic characteristics, supporting previous evidence that sleep patterns during the preschool years reflect both developmental variability and contextual influences.