title: Loneliness is associated with sleep fragmentation in a communal society.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Loneliness has been shown to predict poor health. One hypothesized mechanism is that lonely individuals do not sleep as well as individuals who feel more connected to others. Our goal was to test whether loneliness is associated with sleep fragmentation or sleep duration.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cross-sectional study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Members of a traditional, communal, agrarian society living in South Dakota.
  
  
  METHODS
  Ninety-five participants (mean age 39.8 years, 55% female) who were ≥ 19 years of age at the study's inception.
  
  
  METHODS
  Not applicable.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We conducted interviews querying loneliness, depression, anxiety, and stress, as well as subjective sleep quality and daytime sleepiness. Study participants wore a wrist actigraph for one week to measure objective sleep properties; the two studied here were sleep fragmentation and sleep duration. Higher loneliness scores were associated with significantly higher levels of sleep fragmentation (β = 0.073, t = 2.55, P = 0.01), controlling for age, sex, body mass index, risk of sleep apnea, and negative affect (a factor comprising symptoms of depression and anxiety, and perceived stress). Loneliness was not associated with sleep duration or with either subjective sleep measure.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Loneliness was a significant predictor of sleep fragmentation. Humans' social nature may partly be manifest through our dependence on feeling secure in our social environment to sleep well.
authors: Department of Health Studies, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA. lkurina@uchicago.edu
authors: Lianne M
authors: LM
authors: Kurina
authors: Kristen L
authors: KL
authors: Knutson
authors: Louise C
authors: LC
authors: Hawkley
authors: John T
authors: JT
authors: Cacioppo
authors: Diane S
authors: DS
authors: Lauderdale
authors: Carole
authors: C
authors: Ober
mesh_terms: D056044:Actigraphy; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000428:Alcohol Drinking / Q000453:epidemiology; D001794:Blood Pressure; D015992:Body Mass Index; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008132:Loneliness; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011581:Psychological Tests; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012424:Rural Population; D012892:Sleep Deprivation / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology*; D012931:Social Environment; D013023:South Dakota; D055815:Young Adult