Sports Performance, Sleep and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: Second Year Results of a Longitudinal Study

Background: In the preliminary results of a longitudinal study, we gathered a baseline insight into students’ sleeping habits, activity levels and anxiety. The results showed that the seventh grade (now eighth grade) students reported mild anxiety, played sports non-competitively and slept recommended by the National Sleep Foundation (NSF). In the second year of this study, we continue to look at the trends of sleep, athletic performance and emotional wellness. Methods: 40 eight grade students were administered an ActiGraph watch to assess sleep patterns. Students completed a background survey to obtain information regarding sports participation and subjective injury reports. Students completed the Beck Youth Anxiety Inventory (BYAI) to assess anxiety. Actigraph data was reviewed with a board-certified sleep pulmonologist. Results: 16 males and 24 females wore the watch for 5 school nights. Average age of patients was 13 years (range: 13 to 14). 200 nights of nocturnal sleep were analyzed with total sleep time (TST) averaging: 6.2 hours (370 minutes) (range: 216 to 448 minutes). Females averaged 6 hours (368 minutes) and males averaged 6.25 hours (375 minutes) (p=0.62). Out of the 40 students that wore the watch, 78% (31/40) completed the background survey regarding sports participation. 78% (24/31) reported playing a sport and on average spend 7 hours a week playing (range: 1 to 30 hours). 78% (24/31) also participate in an organized or recreational sport and on average started competitive sports at the age of 6 years (range: 3 to 12 years). 46% (11/24) of students reported injuries that removed them from their sport during the school year (range: 1 to 4 injuries). On the BYAI (n=32), scores were significantly higher this year with a mean score of 16 (moderate anxiety) compared to last year (mean=12, p=0.01). Females scored significantly higher (p=0.04) on the BYAI (mean=18, n=20) than males (mean=12, n=12). Patients that also reported higher anxiety received significantly less sleep (p=0.01, r=-0.46). Conclusion: In the second year of our longitudinal study, our results show that students continue to sleep below the recommendation of the NSF (9 to 11 hours, 546 to 660 minutes) and select students are starting to specialize in sports. However, anxiety compared to last year was significantly higher. As they transition from middle school to high school, we expect to see students undergo personal development, commit to one sport and have a more rigorous school schedule that will continue to affect sleep and emotional wellness.