Short sleep duration is associated with decreased serum leptin, increased energy intake and decreased diet quality in postmenopausal women

OBJECTIVE

Short sleep duration induces hormonal perturbations contributing to hyperphagia, insulin resistance, and obesity. The majority of these studies are conducted in young adults. This analysis in a large (n = 769) sample of postmenopausal women (median age 63 years) sought to (a) confirm that sleep duration and sleep quality are negatively correlated with circulating leptin concentrations and (b) to examine the relationship between self-reported sleep, dietary energy intake, and diet quality, as well as, investigate the role of leptin in these associations.

METHODS

Sleep duration/quality, insomnia, and dietary intake were determined via self-report. Blood samples were collected following an overnight fast to assess serum leptin concentration. All analyses were adjusted for total body fat mass.

RESULTS

Women reporting ≤6 hr sleep/night had lower serum leptin concentrations than those reporting ≥8 hr sleep (P = 0.04). Furthermore, those with ≤6 hr sleep/night reported higher dietary energy intake (P = 0.01) and lower diet quality (P = 0.04) than the reference group (7 hr sleep/night). Women sleeping ≥8 hr also reported lower diet quality than the reference group (P = 0.02). Importantly, serum leptin did not confound these associations.

CONCLUSIONS

These results provide evidence that sleep duration is inversely associated with serum leptin and dietary energy intake in postmenopausal women.