The Effect of Eating Frequency on Sleep Quality Among Healthy Adults: A component of the frequency of eating and satiety hormones (FRESH) study

Abstract

The relationship between sleep and health have been well documented, with scientific evidence supporting a positive association between high quality of sleep and health-related outcomes. Given the importance of sleep, the current paper explores the possible ways to improve sleep quality through eating frequency (EF). Data were provided by the Frequency of Eating and Satiety Hormones (FRESH) study conducted at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The FRESH study was a randomized, cross-over clinical trial where participants were randomly selected to follow a low EF (3 meals/day) and high EF (6 meals/day) meal plans for a 21-day period. Sleep quality was evaluated using the self-reported Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) survey at the end of each period. A total of 49 participants from the FRESH study fully completed the PSQI. A three-way ANOVA with repeated measures was performed to compare the mean PSQI scores after following the low and high EF interventions to determine the effects on sleep quality, controlling for BMI and gender. In conclusion, low EF resulted in a 0.5-point greater global PSQI than high EF. However, there was insufficient evidence to support a statistically significant difference in PSQI scores between the low and high EF when controlling for BMI and gender.