Associations of muscle-strengthening and aerobic exercise with self-reported components of sleep health among a nationally representative sample of 47,564 US adults.

OBJECTIVES

Evidence demonstrates that physical activity is favorably associated with indicators of sleep health. However, population-based studies rarely examine the relationship between different physical activity modalities (ie, aerobic exercise vs muscle-strengthening exercise) with components of sleep health.

METHODS

Cross-sectional analyses were conducted on the US 2017 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Validated items assessed self-reported moderate-to-vigorous-intensity aerobic physical activity (MVPA), muscle-strengthening exercise (MSE), sleep duration, difficulties and disorders. Poisson regression assessed prevalence ratios (PR) of 5 components of detrimental sleep health (short sleep; long sleep; poor quality sleep; observed snoring; and observed breathing stoppage) separately for adults 18-64 years and ≥65 years, across 4 categories of physical activity guideline adherence (met neither [reference]; MSE only; MVPA only; met both).

RESULTS

The sample comprised 47,564 adults (mean age: 48.4 years; ±1.4; 51.6% female). Among those 18-64 years, with the exception of short sleep (4-6 hours), for all other detrimental sleep health components, the lowest PRs were observed among those meeting both MVPA-MSE guidelines. Among those aged ≥65 years, for all 5 detrimental sleep health components, compared to the other physical activity categories, the lowest PRs were observed among those meeting both MVPA-MSE guidelines. All associations remained after adjusting for potential confounders (sex, education, income, smoking, alcohol, depression, hypertension, diabetes).

CONCLUSION

A physical activity routine that includes both MVPA and MSE is likely to be beneficial for better sleep health. Longitudinal studies are needed to establish the temporal relationships between MVPA/MSE guideline adherence and sleep health.