"Is there an Association Between Self-Reported Sleep Duration, Body Mass Index and Waist-Hip Ratio in Young Adults? A Cross-Sectional Pilot Study".
BACKGROUND
Sleep is vital for mental and physical health of an individual. Duration of sleep influences the metabolism and regulates body weight.


OBJECTIVE
To assess the cross-sectional association of sleep duration with body mass index (BMI) and waist-hip ratio in Malaysian students.


METHODS
Eighty-nine Malaysian students of both genders, and with a mean (standard deviation) age of 21.2 (0.9) years were included. Institutional Ethics Committee clearance was obtained prior to the start of study. The subjects were interviewed regarding the average hours of sleep/day, their self-reported sleep duration was categorized as < 6hour/day (short sleep duration), 6-7hour/day and > 7hour/day. Their height (in meters), weight (in kilograms), waist and hip circumference (in centimetre) were measured. BMI and waist-hip ratio were calculated using appropriate formulas and expressed as mean (standard deviation). The duration of sleep was compared with BMI and waist-hip ratio using one way ANOVA.


RESULTS
No statistical significance was observed when sleep duration was associated with BMI (p=0.65) and waist-hip ratio (p=0.95). Duration of sleep did not affect BMI and waist hip ratio in the Malaysian students in our study. The age and healthy lifestyle of the subjects in this study may have been a reason for no significant influence of short sleep duration on the BMI and waist-hip ratio.


CONCLUSIONS
No association was found between sleep duration with BMI and waist hip ratio in the Malaysian students.
Faculty, Department of Physiology, Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), Manipal University , Manipal, India .
M Ganesh
MG
Kamath
Faculty, Department of Physiology, Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), Manipal University , Manipal, India .
Jay
J
Prakash
Faculty, Department of Biochemistry, Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), Manipal University , Manipal, India .
Sambit
S
Dash
MBBS Students, Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), Manipal University , Manipal, India .
Sudipta
S
Chowdhury
MBBS Students, Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), Manipal University , Manipal, India .
Zuhilmi Bin
ZB
Ahmed
Faculty, Department of Physiology, Melaka Manipal Medical College (Manipal Campus), Manipal University , Manipal, India .
Muhammad Zaim Zharif Bin Mohd
MZ
Yusof
Body mass index; Malaysia; Medical students; Sleep; Waist-hip ratio