AUTHOR=Bláfoss Rúni , Sundstrup Emil , Jakobsen Markus Due , Bay Hans , Garde Anne Helene , Andersen Lars Louis 

TITLE=Are Insomnia Type Sleep Problems Associated With a Less Physically Active Lifestyle? A Cross-Sectional Study Among 7,700 Adults From the General Working Population

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Public Health

VOLUME=7

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2019.00117

DOI=10.3389/fpubh.2019.00117

ISSN=2296-2565

ABSTRACT=<p><bold>Background:</bold> Sleep problems are common in the general population and negatively affect both private and work life. A vicious circle may exist between poor sleep and an unhealthy lifestyle. For example, poor sleep may drain the energy to do health-promoting physical activity during leisure-time after work. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between sleep problems and the duration of low- and high-intensity leisure-time physical activity in sedentary and physical workers.</p><p><bold>Methods:</bold> This cross-sectional study employ data from the Danish Work Environment Cohort Study in 2010, where currently employed wage-earners in Denmark on daytime schedule (<italic>N</italic> = 7,706) replied to questions about sleep quality (cf. the Bergen Insomnia Scale) and participation in low- and high-intensity leisure-time physical activity. Associations were modeled using general linear models controlling for various confounders.</p><p><bold>Results:</bold> Workers with high levels of sleep problems reported less high-intensity leisure-time physical activity. Specifically, the weekly duration of high-intensity leisure-time physical activity was 139 (95%CI 111–168), 129 (95%CI 101–158), and 122 (95%CI 92–151) min in sedentary workers with sleep problems &lt; 1, 1–3, and ≥3 days per week, respectively. The same pattern was observed among physical workers. In sedentary workers ≥50 years, the fully adjusted model showed a weekly duration in high-intensity physical activity during leisure of 122 (95%CI 83–161), 102 (95%CI 64–141), and 90 (95%CI 51–130) among those with sleep problems &lt; 1, 1–3, and ≥3 days per week, respectively.</p><p><bold>Conclusions:</bold> Workers, particularly sedentary older workers, having sleep problems report less high-intensity leisure-time physical activity. These data suggest that a vicious circle may indeed exist between poor sleep and reduced leisure-time physical activity.</p>