Eating habits are associated with subjective sleep quality outcomes among university students: findings of a cross-sectional study.
Level 4 - case-series / case-control
Cross-sectional survey without longitudinal follow-up
PubMed 34613509 · doi:10.1007/s11325-021-02506-w
What was done
In a cross-sectional study, 498 university students completed self-report questionnaires assessing eating habits, meal timing, and subjective sleep quality via the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Associations between dietary behaviors and sleep quality metrics were evaluated using correlation and multiple logistic regression adjusting for demographic variables.
What was found
Students who skipped breakfast, ate late-night snacks, or replaced meals with snacks had a 1.20-fold, 1.24-fold, and 1.25-fold increased likelihood of poor overall sleep quality, respectively. Multiple logistic regression identified significant correlations with poor sleep quality for skipping breakfast (r = -0.111, P = 0.007), late-night snacks (r = -0.109, P = 0.007), replacing meals with snacks (r = -0.126, P = 0.002), and irregular mealtimes (r = -0.094, P = 0.018). After demographic adjustment, replacing meals with snacks and skipping breakfast retained the strongest independent associations with poor sleep quality.
Why it matters
These findings highlight specific meal timing and eating behaviors associated with worse subjective sleep quality in young adults, suggesting potential targets for lifestyle-based sleep hygiene interventions.
Limits
The cross-sectional design precludes causal inference and cannot determine directionality. All dietary patterns and sleep measures relied entirely on subjective self-reporting without objective validation (such as actigraphy or polysomnography), and the university student sample limits generalizability.
Cited by
- supports Consuming a large amount of calories within one to three hours before sleep impedes sleep quality.