Dietary patterns and sleep disorders in Mexican adults from a National Health and Nutrition Survey

Abstract

Given the high prevalence of multiple non-communicable chronic diseases in Mexico, the aim of the present study was to assess the association between dietary patterns and sleep disorders in a national representative sample of 5076 Mexican adults (20–59 years) from the 2016 National Health and Nutrition Survey. Through a cross-sectional study, we used the Berlin sleep symptoms questionnaire to estimate the proportion of adults with insomnia, obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) and other related problems such as daytime symptoms and inadequate sleep duration. Dietary data were collected through a seven-day semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire, and dietary patterns were determined through cluster analysis. Associations between dietary patterns and sleep disorders were assessed by multivariate logistic regression models adjusted for age, sex, well-being, rural/urban area type, geographical region, tobacco use, physical activity level and energy intake. Three dietary patterns were identified: traditional (high in legumes and tortilla), industrialised (high in sugar-sweetened beverages, fast foods, and alcohol, coffee or tea) and mixed (high in meat, poultry, fruits and vegetables). Multivariate logistic regression showed that the industrialised pattern yielded higher odds for daytime symptoms (OR 1.49; 95 % CI 1.12, 1.99) and OSA (OR 1.63; 95 % CI 1.21, 2.19) compared with the traditional pattern. In conclusion, dietary patterns are associated with sleep disorders in Mexican adults. Further research is required to break the vicious cycle of poor-quality diet, sleep symptoms and health.