Poor dietary habits, like consuming ultra-processed or nutrient-poor foods, negatively affect sleep. Study: Association of Physical Activity and/or Diet with Sleep Quality and Duration in Adolescents: A Scoping Review. Image Credit: Fabio Principe / Shutterstock.
com A recent Nutrients study reviews the impact of physical activity (PA) and diet on the duration and quality of sleep among adolescents. Why is sleep important? Sleep is a fundamental biological need, particularly for adolescents, who are advised to sleep between eight and 10 hours every day. Despite these guidelines, most young adults only get about seven hours of sleep each night, with 11-30% of adolescents experiencing sleep disorders.
It is crucial to maintain an adequate and balanced diet that provides an adequate supply of nutrients and calories for various bodily processes and reducing the risk of chronic diseases. Thus, in addition to sleep, diet and PA are also essential for overall health. Due to their role in maintaining health and well-being, investigating the potentially complex link between PA, diet, and sleep is imperative.
About the study The current study reviewed published studies examining the association between diet and PA with the duration and quality of sleep in adolescents by searching several databases including PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and ERIC. All reviewed studies evaluated PA and/or diet along with sleep, included a sample comprising adolescents between 11 and 18 years of age with.