Short sleep duration is linked to increased risk for pediatric mental health issues

Takeaway

• Short sleep duration during childhood is associated with increased risk for later symptoms of emotional disorders in children and behavioral disorders in boys.

Why this matters

• Addressing sleep disturbances in children could reduce risk for later behavioral and psychological problems.

Study design

• Population-based cohort study of 799 Norwegian children from the Trondheim Early Secure Study.
• Sleep duration was assessed using the triaxial accelerometer and clinical interviews biennially from ages 6 to 12 years.
• Funding: Research Council of Norway; others.

Key results

• Symptoms of emotional disorders 2 years later were predicted by shorter sleep duration at ages:
  • 6 years: unstandardized regression coefficient [β], −0.44 (P=.02); and
  • 8 years: −0.47 (P=.01).
• Symptoms of behavioral disorders 2 years later were predicted (β) by shorter sleep duration at ages:
  • 8 years: −0.65 (P=.03) boys vs −0.14 (P=.48) girls; and
  • 10 years: −0.58 (P=.02) boys vs −0.05 (P=.84) girls.
• The association between emotional disorders and short sleep duration was significant for boys vs girls at ages 8 and 10 years (P<.001).

Limitations

• The generalization of findings to other regions may be limited.

Coauthored with Chitra Ravi, MPharm