title: Intake of stimulant foods is associated with development of parasomnias in children.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To verify if nighttime feeding habits can influence parasomnia in children.
  
  
  METHODS
  Seven private and four public Elementary Schools took part in the study. A total of 595 Sleep Disturbance Scale for Children were distributed to the parents of children aged from 7 to 8 years. Data of dietary recall, starting time to school, physical activity, and nutritional status were studied.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 226 questionnaires completed, 92 (41%) reported parasomnia. Girls had 2.3 times more the chance to parasomnia than boys. Children who consumed stimulant foods had 2.6 times more chance to have parasomnia than those of children who consumed non-stimulant foods. There were no difference between parasomnia and no-parasomnia groups in food type (p = 0.78) or timing of last meal before bedtime (p = 0.50).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our findings suggest that intake of stimulant foods is associated with development of parasomnia in children.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fabiana
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ruotolo
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lucila B F
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Prado
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Vanessa R
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: Ferreira
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Gilmar F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Prado
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: Luciane B C
authors.initials: LB
authors.lastname: Carvalho
mesh_terms: D015992:Body Mass Index; D002110:Caffeine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002648:Child; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005502:Food / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D062407:Meals / Q000502:physiology*; D009752:Nutritional Status / Q000502:physiology; D020447:Parasomnias / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D015995:Prevalence; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D000697:Central Nervous System Stimulants; D002110:Caffeine