Abstract
Abstract Introduction Short sleep (< 7 hours of sleep/24 hr. period) duration is associated with unhealthy cholesterol levels, a significant cardiovascular risk marker. Precious epidemiological studies indicate that Hispanics are at increased risk for hypercholesteremia. However, little is known about whether sleep duration contributes to high cholesterol levels, among Hispanics. We sought to investigate the following: 1) Examine whether sleep duration predicts cholesterol levels; 2) Examine whether this relationship differs in Hispanics in comparison to non-Hispanics. Methods This study was based on the 2020 National Health Interview Survey. Cholesterol, the outcome, is defined as whether an individual had high cholesterol during the last 12 months. Sleep quantity was categorized as follows: short sleep (< 7 hours), healthy sleep (7-8 hours), and long sleep (≥9 hours). For stratified analyses, we investigated whether the relationship between sleep duration and cholesterol differed between Hispanics and non-Hispanics. We performed unadjusted and fully adjusted binary logistic regression analyses, with age, sex, education, income, and BMI as covariates. Results In our unadjusted models, Hispanic short sleepers had increased odds of high cholesterol (OR: 1.39 p<.01 ), while long sleepers (OR: 1.25, n.s. p=.129) did not, compared to individuals who slept 7-8 hours. Non-Hispanic short (OR: 1.14 p<.01) and long (OR: 1.47, p< .01) sleepers had greater odds of high cholesterol, compared to individuals who slept 7-8 hours. For our fully adjusted models, Hispanic short sleepers had increased odds of high cholesterol (OR: 1.29, p<.05), while long sleepers did not (OR: 1.15, n.s. p=.55), compared to individuals who slept 7-8 hours. Non-Hispanics short sleepers had greater odds of high cholesterol (OR: 1.13 p<.01), while among long sleepers, no significant relationship was observed (OR: 1.05, p=.46), compared to individuals who slept 7-8 hours. Overall, Hispanic short sleepers had greater odds of high cholesterol compared to their non-Hispanic counterparts. Conclusion Hispanic short sleepers have an increased risk for high cholesterol. Further studies are needed to elucidate the pathophysiological mechanisms that affect the relationship between short sleep and cholesterol levels among Hispanics. This will enable tailored risk and protective profiling of Hispanic individuals to reduce their risk for high cholesterol. Support (if any) K01HL135452, K07AG052685, R01AG072644, and R01HL152453