IJERPH, Vol. 16, Pages 200: Are Sedentary Behaviors Associated with Sleep Duration? A Cross-Sectional Case from Croatia (International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health)

Although both sedentary behavior and sleep duration are risk factors for obesity, little evidence is provided regarding their mutual associations in young adults, who are at extreme risk of spending more time sitting and having irregular sleeping hygiene. Thus, the main purpose of the present study was to explore the associations between different sedentary behaviors and sleep duration. In this cross-sectional study, we recruited 2100 university students from the city of Zagreb. To assess sedentary behaviors and sleep duration, we used validated questionnaires. The associations between sedentary behaviors and sleep duration were analyzed using logistic regression analyses and were adjusted for sex, body-mass index, self-rated health, socioeconomic status, smoking status, binge drinking, psychological distress and chronic disease/s. Participants being in the third (OR = 1.45; 95% CI 1.05 to 2.01) and fourth (OR = 1.82; 95% CI 1.26 to 2.61) quartile of the screen-time, in the third (OR = 1.49; 95% CI 1.05 to 2.13) and fourth (OR = 1.72; 95% CI 1.22 to 2.42) quartile of the leisure-time sedentary behavior and in the fourth (OR = 1.45; 95% CI 1.04 to 2.02) quartile of the total sedentary behavior were more likely to be ‘short’ sleepers (<7 h). Also, participants being in the third (OR = 1.63; 95% CI 1.16 to 2.30) and fourth (OR = 1.93; 95% CI 1.33 to 2.81) quartile of the screen-time and in the fourth (OR = 1.45; 95% CI 1.05 to 2.00) quartile of the total sedentary behavior were more likely to be ‘long’ sleepers (>9 h). Our study shows that sedentary behavior in screen-time and total sedentary behavior are associated with both ‘short’ and ‘long’ sleep duration.