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. 2017 Jul 1;40(7):zsx085.
doi: 10.1093/sleep/zsx085.

Characterizing Adult Sleep Behavior Over 20 Years-The Population-Based Doetinchem Cohort Study

Margot L Zomers  1 , Gerben Hulsegge  1   2 , Sandra H van Oostrom  1 , Karin I Proper  1   2 , W M Monique Verschuren  1   3 , H Susan J Picavet  1
Affiliations

Characterizing Adult Sleep Behavior Over 20 Years-The Population-Based Doetinchem Cohort Study

Margot L Zomers et al. Sleep. .

Abstract

Study objectives: To describe sleep duration patterns of adults over a 20-year period; to compare sociodemographic, lifestyle, and health characteristics across these patterns; and to relate the patterns to sleep quality.

Methods: The study population consisted of 3695 adults aged 20 to 59 years at baseline. Five measurements of self-reported sleep duration were used to compose seven patterns from 1987 to 2012: persistent short (≤6 hours), moderate (7-8 hours), or long (≥9 hours) sleep duration and several changing patterns (varying and became short, moderate, or long sleepers). Multinomial logistic regression analyses were used to compare characteristics across sleep duration patterns.

Results: About 56% of the adults had persistent moderate sleep duration over 20 years. This group had a better sleep quality than the other groups. Of the adults who changed in their sleep duration (40%), 43% became a short sleeper. Sleep duration patterns that deviate from persistent moderate sleep duration were associated with physical inactivity during leisure time (odds ratios [ORs] and 95% confidence intervals [95% CIs] varied between 1.26 [1.04-1.53] and 1.58 [1.06-2.37]) and with poor self-rated health (ORs [95% CIs] varied between 1.50 [1.20-1.87] and 2.15 [1.48-3.12]).

Conclusions: Nearly half of the adults did not have persistent moderate sleep duration over a 20-year period and more than one-sixth became short sleeper. This is reason for concern considering the adverse health status associated with short and long sleep duration. Leisure-time physical activity is a potential important target to prevent unfavorable changes in sleep duration over the life course.

Keywords: epidemiology; population-based cohort study; sleep duration; sleep quality.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Flowchart of participation in the Doetinchem Cohort Study. Note: in the second round a random sample (n = 7768) of the 12,404 adults who initially participated was reinvited because of budgetary reasons. In subsequent rounds, adults dropped out due to, for instance, emigration, death, and active withdrawal. Common reasons for active withdrawal were no time or interest to participate and participation in other medical investigations.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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