Effects of Acute and Chronic Sleep Deprivation on Eating Behavior

Research Question: How do acute and chronic sleep deprivation affect eating behavior in university students? Does lack of sleep decrease fruit & vegetable intake or increase sweet & starchy food intake? Aims: 1) determine the affect average hours of sleep or acute sleep deprivation (defined as less than 6 hour sleep per night) has on consumption of nutritious foods, measured by examining average fruit and vegetable servings overall and on sleep-deprived days; 2) examine the effect of average hours of sleep or acute deprivation on consumption of sweet and starchy foods, defined by servings per day of French fries, potato chips, and dessert foods, such as cookies or cake, both overall and on sleep deprived days. Hypothesis: Inadequate sleep, defined as less than six hours per night, will increase sweet and starchy food consumption, and decrease average fruit and vegetable consumption in college students. ABSTRACT Background: Sleep-deprivation is thought to be a factor in the rising American obesity epidemic. Altered sleep cycles affect appetite-regulating hormone levels and enhance the hedonic effect of food consumption. As a result, sleep restriction has been associated with an increased daily energy intake of more than 500 calories and high-carbohydrate/high-fat consumption. However, past studies have not examined the relationship between sleep deprivation and decreased intake of nutrient-dense fruits and vegetables as a factor in increased energy consumption. Methods: Data was collected from 152 students (110 females and 42 males) between 18 and 53 years old at the University of Kentucky. Students self-reported data on daily and weekly sleep habits, dietary habits, weight, height, and demographics via an online Qualtrics cross-sectional survey. Descriptive, correlations and t-test analyses were performed in Microsoft Excel. Results: The data concluded that acute sleep deprivation is not correlated with the amount of respectively). P-values in all compared variables were significant (p<0.001). Though data indicated that students, on average, consumed less fruit and vegetables and more sweets and starches on sleep-deprived days, variance across the population was high. Most of the students surveyed were undergraduate freshmen (48.0%) and/or living with roommates (81.6%). Conclusion: These results run contrary to previous studies that have demonstrated a connection between sleep deprivation, and increased high-carbohydrate/high fat food consumption and BMI. The well-established correlation between increased energy consumption and sleep deprivation, as well as the high variance within this survey population, indicate the need for a larger sample population to accurately assess variable relationships. In addition, factors …