Abstract Introduction Introduction: Youth with closer relationships with their mothers have better sleep health. Limited research examines longitudinal associations between closeness with one's mother and sleep health from adolescence into young adulthood. We investigated cross-sectional associations between maternal closeness and sleep health and longitudinal associations from age 15 to 22. Methods Methods: Adolescents (n=3241; M age=15.6) and young adults (n=1048; M age=22.2) from two waves of the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing and sleep sub-study self-reported maternal closeness on a scale of 1-4 (low to high). Sleep estimates were collected at both waves including actigraphic (M15y=6; M22y=10.7 days) and self-reported sleep timing and duration, actigraphic wake after sleep onset and sleep maintenance efficiency (SMEff), and self-reported difficulty falling and staying asleep (#nights/week). Separate linear regression models assessed cross-sectional associations of maternal closeness with sleep health at ages 15 and 22, while adjusting for sociodemographic covariates and depressive symptoms collected at each wave. Longitudinal associations between age 15 maternal closeness and age 22 sleep health were assessed using linear regression adjusting for age 22 sociodemographic and depressive symptoms. Results Results: In adolescence, greater closeness with one's mother was associated with longer sleep duration (b=0.18h; 95% CI:0.13,0.23), earlier bedtime (b=-0.16h; 95% CI:-0.21,-0.11), and fewer nights with difficulty falling asleep (b=-0.23; 95% CI:-0.31,-0.15; n=3241) according to self-report. Greater maternal closeness during adolescence was also associated with lower actigraphic SMEff (b=-0.28%; 95% CI:-0.53,-0.03; n=883). Among young adults, greater closeness with one's mother was associated with fewer nights of self-reported difficulty falling asleep (b=-0.21; 95% CI:-0.37,-0.05; n=830), yet higher actigraphic SMEff (b=0.39%; 95% CI:0.07,0.72; n=467) in fully adjusted models. Longitudinally, greater maternal closeness in adolescence predicted fewer nights with self-reported difficulty falling asleep in young adulthood (b=-0.25; 95% CI:[-0.44,-0.06; n=820). No other significant associations between maternal closeness and sleep were identified in cross-sectional or longitudinal analyses. Conclusion Conclusions: Findings suggest stronger emotional attachment with one's mother in adolescence may be protective of sleep health into adulthood. Future studies should consider interventions aiming to strengthen or maintain the relationship between mother and child as a mechanism to potentially improve sleep health. Support (if any) Support: R01HD073352 (LH), R01HD036916, R01HD039135, R01HD040421
Mitchener et al. (Fri,) studied this question.
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