Hong Jun, Liu Yuan, Guo Yaru, Li YuQiang, Zhang Feng, Sun Pengwei, Hu Yanyan, Liu He, Yin Xiaojian
College of Physical Education and Health, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200241, China.
Key Laboratory of Adolescent Health Assessment and Exercise Intervention of the Ministry of Education, East China Normal University, Shanghai, 200241, China.
BMC Public Health. 2025 Jul 14;25(1):2453. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-23567-6.
Poor sleep quality is a prevalent health concern among Chinese adolescents. Although significant focus has been given to the impact of sleep problems on cognitive function, research on the association between sleep quality and working memory in typically developing adolescents remains limited. The aim of this study is to examine this association in Chinese adolescents.
The present study randomly recruited 2428 adolescents aged 12-18 years from four schools in Shanghai and Suzhou, eastern China in 2023 through two-stage cluster sampling. Information on sleep quality was collected using the questionnaire (Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index). Adolescents' working memory was evaluated using the N-back task. A general linear regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the association between sleep quality and working memory, adjusted for potential confounders. Interaction terms, representing the product of sleep quality and each modifier, were included to test for interaction effects.
In the adjusted model, adolescents with good sleep quality served as the reference group. Those with poor sleep quality had increased reaction times by 0.11 s (95%CI:0.09-0.13) during the 1-back task and by 0.10 s (95%CI:0.08-0.12) during the 2-back task. Moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) time, cardiorespiratory fitness (CRF) and age significantly modified the associations between sleep quality and working memory (P for interaction < 0.05).
Chinese Adolescents with poor sleep quality exhibited poorer working memory, particularly among those who were younger, had insufficient MVPA time, and lower CRF. Good sleep quality is significant in improving cognition function among Chinese adolescents.
睡眠质量差是中国青少年中普遍存在的健康问题。尽管睡眠问题对认知功能的影响已受到广泛关注，但关于发育正常的青少年睡眠质量与工作记忆之间关联的研究仍然有限。本研究旨在探讨中国青少年中的这种关联。
本研究于2023年通过两阶段整群抽样，从中国东部上海和苏州的四所学校随机招募了2428名12 - 18岁的青少年。使用问卷（匹兹堡睡眠质量指数）收集睡眠质量信息。青少年的工作记忆通过N - 回溯任务进行评估。进行一般线性回归分析以评估睡眠质量与工作记忆之间的关联，并对潜在混杂因素进行了调整。纳入了代表睡眠质量与每个调节因素乘积的交互项，以检验交互作用。
在调整模型中，以睡眠质量良好的青少年作为参照组。睡眠质量差的青少年在1 - 回溯任务中的反应时间增加了0.11秒（95%置信区间：0.09 - 0.13），在2 - 回溯任务中的反应时间增加了0.10秒（95%置信区间：0.08 - 0.12）。中度至剧烈身体活动（MVPA）时间、心肺适能（CRF）和年龄显著改变了睡眠质量与工作记忆之间的关联（交互作用P < 0.05）。
睡眠质量差的中国青少年表现出较差的工作记忆，尤其是在年龄较小、MVPA时间不足和CRF较低的青少年中。良好的睡眠质量对改善中国青少年的认知功能具有重要意义。
