Effects of physical activity at work and life-style on sleep in workers from an Amazonian Extractivist Reserve

Abstract

Physical activity has been recommended as a strategy for improving sleep. Nevertheless, physical effort at work might not be not the ideal type of activity to promote sleep quality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of type of job (low vs. high physical effort) and life-style on sleep of workers from an Amazonian Extractivist Reserve, Brazil. A cross-sectional study of 148 low physical activity (factory workers) and 340 high physical activity (rubber tappers) was conducted between September and November 2011. The workers filled out questionnaires collecting data on demographics (sex, age, occupation, marital status and children), health (reported morbidities, sleep disturbances, musculoskeletal pain and body mass index) and life-style (smoking, alcohol use and practice of leisure-time physical activity). Logistic regression models were applied with the presence of sleep disturbances as the primary outcome variable. The prevalence of sleep disturbances among factory workers and rubber tappers was 15.5% and 27.9%, respectively. The following independent variables of the analysis were selected based on a univariate model (p<0.20): sex, age, marital status, work type, smoking, morbidities and musculoskeletal pain. The predictors for sleep disturbances were type of job (high physical effort); sex (female); age (>40 years), and having musculoskeletal pain (≥5 symptoms). Rubber tapper work, owing to greater physical effort, pain and musculoskeletal fatigue, was associated with sleep disturbances. Being female and older than 40 years were also predictors of poor sleep. In short, these findings suggest that demanding physical exertion at work may not improve sleep quality.

Sleep and light exposure across different levels of urbanisation in Brazilian communities

“…High physical work (e.g. rubber tappers in Acre, Brazil) was associated with lower sleep quality 36 ; physical inactivity was likewise reported to be a predictor of sleep complaints and depression 37 . While physical exercise is recommended to prevent or treat sleep disorders, the interrelationship between these two factors is not yet fully understood 38 .…”

Eating Behavior (Duration, Content, and Timing) Among Workers Living under Different Levels of Urbanization

“…Nevertheless, it should be mentioned that differences in the socioeconomic conditions among the groups might also contribute to the observed difference in fat consumption [46]. Moreover, low fat consumption, as well as physical effort at work, may contribute to the lower percentage of overweight and obesity among this rural population relative to the other groups [46,47]. Although the differences in physical activity might be seen as a limitation of this study, its main focus was to analyze the choice of foods, food content, and feeding times, therefore it seems unlikely that physical activity may have some influence on these factors.…”

Are Insomnia Type Sleep Problems Associated With a Less Physically Active Lifestyle? A Cross-Sectional Study Among 7,700 Adults From the General Working Population

“…It is important to state that associations between sleep and physical activity may be bi-directional, i.e., sleep may affect physical activity and vice versa in a vicious circle. However, physical exercise elicits beneficial effects on sleep and has been associated with lower prevalence of sleep problems such as disturbed sleep, un-refreshing sleep, satisfaction with sleep and sleep apnea (6, 7, 12–14, 18, 40–42). Opposite, sedentary behavior has been found to associate with higher prevalence of sleep problems (e.g., sleep apnea) (8, 42).…”

“…Bromley et al reported that restricted sleep resulted in a decreased duration and intensity of physical activity (16). The prevalence of sleep problems may vary across work categories and is typically more pronounced in workers with physically demanding job tasks (physical workers) compared with sedentary workers (6, 7). However, even though physically active workers show higher prevalence of sleep problems, participating in physical activity during leisure is associated with lower prevalence of sleep problems in blue-collar workers (18).…”

“…Thus, the aim of this cross-sectional study was to investigate the associations between sleep problems (assessed by the Bergen Insomnia Scale) and the duration of low- and high-intensity leisure-time physical activity in young and old as well as sedentary and physical workers. Because sleep problems are more pronounced among physical workers (6, 7), we hypothesized that sleep problems were negatively associated with the duration of both low- and high-intensity physical activity, especially in physical workers.…”