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Publication Detail

Title: Plasma DHA Is Related to Sleep Timing and Duration in a Cohort of Mexican Adolescents.

Authors: Jansen, Erica C; Conroy, Deirdre A; Burgess, Helen J; O'Brien, Louise M; Cantoral, Alejandra; Téllez-Rojo, Martha María; Peterson, Karen E; Baylin, Ana

Published In J Nutr, (2020 Mar 01)

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Delayed sleep timing and short sleep duration represent a significant public health burden in adolescents. Whether intake of nutrients affects the pineal gland, where sleep/wake cycles are regulated, remains unclear. OBJECTIVES: In a cross-sectional analysis, we investigated whether plasma concentrations of DHA and arachidonic acid (AA), long-chain fatty acids that can be obtained through diet, were related to sleep timing and duration in adolescents. METHODS: The study population included 405 Mexico City adolescents (mean age ± SD = 14.2 ± 2.1 y; 48% males) who took part in a 2015-2016 follow-up visit as a part of an ongoing cohort study. Fatty acid concentrations were measured in plasma using GLC, as a percentage of total fatty acids. Sleep midpoint and duration were assessed with 7-d wrist actigraphy. We categorized DHA and AA plasma concentrations into quartiles (Q1-Q4; Q4 = highest fatty acids). We conducted cross-sectional linear regression analysis with sleep characteristics as separate outcomes and quartiles of DHA and AA as exposures, adjusting for sex, age, and BMI z-scores. RESULTS: Mean ± SD plasma DHA (as percentage of total fatty acids) was 1.2 ± 0.4%, whereas mean ± SD plasma AA was 6.2 ± 1.5%. In adjusted analysis, higher plasma DHA was linearly associated with longer sleep duration on the weekends; to illustrate, those in Q4 compared with Q1 had 32 min longer duration (95% CI: 7, 57; P trend = 0.005). Higher DHA was also associated with earlier sleep timing during weekdays and weekends, although in a nonlinear fashion. The largest difference was a 0.75-h (45-min) later sleep midpoint in Q2 compared with Q4 (95% CI: 0.36, 1.14). CONCLUSIONS: Plasma DHA was associated with earlier sleep timing and longer weekend sleep duration in Mexican adolescents. Whether DHA supplementation improves sleep in adolescent populations deserves consideration in randomized trials.

PubMed ID: 31758194 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: No MeSH terms associated with this publication

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