Department of Food Science and Nutrition, College of Food and Agriculture Sciences, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Department of Medicine, College of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Chronobiol Int. 2024 Aug;41(8):1189-1198. doi: 10.1080/07420528.2024.2389908. Epub 2024 Aug 14.
Chronotype is an established concept designed to capture the internal clock's phase in real-life conditions. It is vital in many aspects of daily life and can interfere considerably with numerous factors in a given population. Recognizing nonmodifiable and modifiable factors is crucial for identifying covariates of interest when studying the link between chronotype and health status. To date, chronotype and its related factors have not been extensively investigated. The present study aimed to explore the association of chronotypes with meal frequency, physical activity, and demographic factors among the Saudi population. This cross-sectional web-based questionnaire involved 1369 adults (aged 18 years and above) from the general public in Saudi Arabia and was conducted between March and May 2019. Chronotype was assessed using the reduced version of the original Horne and Ostberg morningness-eveningness questionnaire (MEQ). Meal frequencies and demographics data (age, gender, marital status, place of residence, educational level, employment status, income) were obtained. Physical activity level was also obtained using the international physical activity questionnaire. The MEQ scores group individuals into three categories: morning-type, neither-type, and evening-type. The neither-type individuals represented 41.6% (95% confidence interval [CI], 37.5% - 45.6%) of the study population, followed by the morning-type (34.1%; 95% [CI], 29.8% - 38.4%), then the evening-type (24.3%, 95% [CI], 19.6% - 28.9%). Chronotype was significantly associated with age, marital status, employment status and monthly income (All < 0.05). Significant associations between chronotype with meal frequencies (number of meals per day, breakfast frequency, lunch frequency, and dinner frequency) and physical activity were also observed (All < 0.05). This study highlights that meal frequencies and physical activity levels are associated with chronotype distribution. Furthermore, demographics, including age, marital status, employment status, and income, were associated with chronotype distribution.
时型是一个既定的概念，旨在捕捉现实生活条件下内部生物钟的相位。它在日常生活的许多方面都至关重要，并且会对特定人群中的许多因素产生相当大的干扰。认识不可改变和可改变的因素对于确定研究时型与健康状况之间联系的相关因素至关重要。迄今为止，时型及其相关因素尚未得到广泛研究。本研究旨在探讨沙特人群中时型与进餐频率、身体活动以及人口统计学因素之间的关系。这项横断面网络问卷调查涉及沙特阿拉伯的 1369 名成年人（年龄在 18 岁及以上），于 2019 年 3 月至 5 月间进行。使用原始霍恩和奥斯特伯格晨型-晚型问卷（MEQ）的简化版评估时型。获取进餐频率和人口统计学数据（年龄、性别、婚姻状况、居住地点、教育程度、就业状况、收入）。身体活动水平也通过国际身体活动问卷获取。MEQ 得分将个体分为三类：晨型、中间型和晚型。中间型个体占研究人群的 41.6%（95%置信区间[CI]，37.5% - 45.6%），其次是晨型（34.1%；95%CI，29.8% - 38.4%），然后是晚型（24.3%；95%CI，19.6% - 28.9%）。时型与年龄、婚姻状况、就业状况和月收入显著相关（均<0.05）。还观察到时型与进餐频率（每天进餐次数、早餐频率、午餐频率和晚餐频率）和身体活动之间存在显著关联（均<0.05）。本研究表明，进餐频率和身体活动水平与时型分布有关。此外，包括年龄、婚姻状况、就业状况和收入在内的人口统计学因素与时型分布相关。
