Sleep: A Modifiable Risk Factor? Sleep Duration and Obesity Burden in U.S. Adults

Abstract

Obesity remains a major public health challenge globally. Sleep length has been identified as a behaviorally adjustable factor that may influence the risk of obesity. Recent research reveals that the effects of sleeping longer hours remain unclear, but it has been shown that poor sleep is linked to an increase in the prevalence of obesity. This study used data from a nationally representative sample for the period between 2021 and 2023 to examines the relationship between nighttime sleep duration and obesity in the adult population of the United States. The sample size of the dataset is 8,000 participants. Sleep duration is classified into three groups: <6 hours, 6-8 hours, >8 hours. Participants reported their usual hours of nighttime sleep using item SLD012 of the sleep questionnaire. Obesity status was determined by calculating body mass index (BMI) from height and weight data collected in the survey; individuals with a BMI of 30 kg/m² or higher were classified as obese. After controlling for age, sex, and race/ethnicity, we used logistic regression, chi-square tests, and descriptive statistics. Based on the analysis, this study confirmed that participants sleeping <6 hours had the highest obesity prevalence (approximately 48%), compared with those sleeping 6–8 hours (42%) and >8 hours (39%). Sleep duration and obesity were significantly correlated (p<0.001), according to chi-square tests. Short sleepers had considerably higher risks of obesity than regular sleepers, according to logistic regression result. There is currently no clear evidence showing a direct connection between long sleep duration and obesity. In contrast, studies have found that getting too little sleep may raise the chance of getting obesity among U.S. adults. These findings emphasize how crucial it is to get the right amount of sleep to prevent becoming overweight.