Interaction effects of sex on the sleep loss and social jetlag-related negative mood in Japanese children and adolescents: a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Study objectives Sleep problems, such as accumulated sleep loss and social jetlag (SJL), which is characterized by a discrepancy in a person's sleep pattern between the weekday and the weekend, are associated with physical and mental health problems, and academic performance in young ages. However, sex differences in these associations are not fully understood. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of sex on sleep-related factors, mental health (negative mood), and academic performance in Japanese children and adolescents. Methods A cross-sectional online survey was conducted with 9,270 students (boys: N = 4,635, girls: N = 4,635) ranging from the fourth grade of elementary school to the third grade of high school, which typically includes ages 9 to 18 years in Japan. Participants completed the Munich ChronoType Questionnaire, the Athens Insomnia Scale, self-reported academic performance, and negative mood-related questions. Results School grade-related changes in sleep behavior (e.g., delayed bedtime, shortened sleep duration, and increased SJL) were detected. Girls had greater sleep loss on weekdays and SJL on weekends than boys. Multiple regression analysis revealed that sleep loss and SJL were more associated with negative mood and higher insomnia scores in girls than in boys, but not with academic performance. Conclusion Sleep loss and SJL in Japanese girls had a higher correlation to their negative mood and tendency to insomnia than in boys. These results suggest the importance of sex-dependent sleep maintenance for children and adolescents.

Effects of Additional Granola in Children’s Breakfast on Nutritional Balance, Sleep and Defecation: An Open-Label Randomized Cross-Over Trial

“…Social jet lag was evaluated using sleep time differences between the weekdays and weekend. It is well known that social jet lag values are positively associated with not only school grades [30] but also with mental health scores such as depression, exhaustion, and irritability [31]. As the subjects in this study were a population with small social jet lag of 24.2 min during the control period, changes may be seen if a larger SJL population is targeted.…”

Longitudinal course and outcome of social jetlag in adolescents: A 1‐year follow‐up study of the adolescent sleep health epidemiological cohorts

“…To date, many studies have reported an association between social jetlag and daytime functioning in adolescents (Chen et al, 2022; de Souza & Hidalgo, 2014; Kohyama, 2020; Komada et al, 2016; Mathew et al, 2019; Sasawaki et al, 2022; Shinto et al, 2022; Tamura et al, 2022; Tonetti et al, 2022). However, to the best of our knowledge, this study is the first to describe the natural course of changes in depressive symptoms, QOL, and daytime sleepiness due to social jetlag among adolescents.…”

“…This was because the sample size of this study was small, which made it impossible to conduct robust statistical analyses after stratifying the study cohort by sex. It has been reported that the relationship between social jetlag and depressive symptoms may differ between boys and girls (Mathew et al, 2019; Shinto et al, 2022; Tamura & Okamura, 2023). Future studies should increase the sample size and examine the association between social jetlag and daytime functioning, including depressive symptoms, according to sex.…”

“…Sleep problems are common in adolescents (Becker et al, 2017; de Zambotti et al, 2018; Gradisar et al, 2011; Matricciani et al, 2012; Olds et al, 2010), who, in particular, are more likely to have later bedtimes and shorter sleep durations compared with children and adults (Gradisar et al, 2011; Matricciani et al, 2012; Olds et al, 2010; Roenneberg et al, 2004). Consequently, most adolescents accumulate sleep debt over weekdays and compensate their sleep debt with catch‐up sleep on weekends, which leads to a discrepancy in sleep timing between weekdays and weekends (Kang et al, 2014; Olds et al, 2010; Shinto et al, 2022; Tamura et al, 2022). This discrepancy in sleep timing between weekdays and weekends is known as social jetlag (SJL), which represents a circadian misalignment between biological and social time (Wittmann et al, 2006).…”

“…Notably, one previous report suggested that the chronicity of SJL might contribute to distress and mental illness (Henderson et al, 2019); thus, SJL of ≥2 h and SJL of ≥1 h can cause depressive symptoms if the condition persists over an extended period. In addition, previous studies on adolescents have reported that students with SJL commonly experience daytime impairments, including elevated fatigue, reduced well‐being, irritable mood, daytime sleepiness, and poor academic performance (Chen et al, 2022; Kohyama, 2020; Sasawaki et al, 2022; Shinto et al, 2022; Tamura et al, 2022; Tonetti et al, 2022). The daytime dysfunctions attributed to social jetlag are likely to negatively affect student quality of life (QOL), which is a measure of general daytime functioning.…”