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Abstract Introduction Carotenoid consumption has been linked with greater likelihood of appropriate sleep duration and higher levels of sleep quality in adults. As only 2-7% of American adolescents met recommended fruit and vegetable intake guidelines in 2017, and over 70% of high schoolers regularly sleep less than 8 hours per night, adolescents may be especially influenced by relationships between poor diet and poor sleep. Previous studies in this area have been limited to other age groups or examination of singular sleep constructs. Methods Seventy-four adolescents (14-18 years; 43 female) completed 2-3 ASA-24 dietary recalls across randomized weekend and weekdays. They also completed the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), the Epworth Sleepiness Scale for Children and Adolescents (ESS-CHAD), and a Dim-Light Melatonin Onset (DLMO) appointment. Bivariate regressions examined potential associations between average carotenoid consumption (α Carotene, β Carotene, β Cryptoxanthin, Lycopene, Leutin + Zeaxanthin) and self-reported sleep duration (PSQI Item 4), daytime sleepiness (ESS-CHAD Total) and melatonin onset time (DLMO, threshold 4 pg/mL). Subject age and sex were controlled for within each model. To correct for multiple comparisons, p was set to a significance threshold of 0.01 for predictors within the model and 0.05 for the entire model. Results: Results β Cryptoxanthin was a significant predictor of daytime sleepiness (beta=-.024, t(72)=-2.682, p=.009) and explained significant variance in the comprehensive model for this outcome (R2 = .072, F(3, 69)=2.901, p=.041). No other carotenoids emerged as significant predictors of sleep outcomes after correction for multiple comparisons. β Carotene neared significance for predicting duration (beta=-.258 , t(72)=-2.22, p=.030; R2 = .033, F(3, 69)=1.829, p=.15), as did Lycopene (beta=.243 , t(72)=2.086, p=.041; R2 = .026, F(3, 69)=1.632, p=.19). Conclusion β Cryptoxanthin could be investigated as a potential influence on daytime sleepiness in this age group. Further studies are needed to establish causality and to examine the clinical significance of consumption increases in this age group. Underconsumption of whole foods common to this developmental period may make it difficult to detect the effects of adequate or increased intake cross-sectionally. Support (if any)
Kamhout et al. (Sat,) studied this question.