Association of sleep duration with underweight and obesity in older adults: A cross-sectional study of the Chinese longitudinal healthy longevity survey

ObjectivesUnderweight and obesity are two of the main health concerns as they are associated with adverse health outcomes and nutrition disorders. This study determined the association of sleep duration with both underweight and obesity in Chinese older adults. MethodsThis cross-sectional secondary data analysis was conducted using data from the 2018 wave of the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey. There were 13 917 participants aged 65 and above in the analysis. Body mass index (BMI) was categorized into underweight, normal weight and overweight, and obesity. Self-reported sleep duration was divided into short, normal, and long sleep duration. Logistic regression models were used to examine the association of sleep duration with underweight and obesity. ResultsThe prevalence of underweight was 16.7% and the prevalence of obesity was 8.0% in Chinese older adults aged 65 and older. Compared to the normal sleep duration group, the short sleep duration group had a higher incidence of underweight (AOR = 1.29, 95% CI: 1.01-1.65), and the long sleep duration group showed a higher incidence of obesity (AOR = 1.57, 95% CI: 1.07-2.30) in older men. A greater incidence of underweight was found in the short sleep duration group (AOR = 1.19, 95% CI: 1.02-1.40) in old-old adults after adjusting for covariates. ConclusionsShort sleep duration is associated with being underweight and long sleep duration is linked with obesity in older men. Short sleep duration is also a risk factor for the underweight of old-old adults.