TOPLINE:
Decreased total sleep time (TST) and increased resting heart rate (RHR), heart rate variability (HRV), and average nightly respiratory rate (ARR) as measured by a multisensor device worn during sleep accurately correlated with self-reported stress levels in college students, a new study suggests.
METHODOLOGY:
- First-semester college students (n = 525; aged 18-24 years) enrolled in the Lived Experiences measured Using Rings Study (LEMURS) provided continuous biometric data via a wearable device (Oura Ring; Oura Health) and answered weekly surveys regarding stress levels.
- The researchers used mixed-effects regression models to identify associations between perceived stress scores and average nightly TST, RHR, HRV, and ARR.
TAKEAWAY:
- Consistent associations were found between perceived stress scores and TST, RHR, HRV, and ARR, which persisted even after controlling for gender and week of the semester.
- Risk for moderate to high stress decreased by 38% with every additional hour of TST (P < .01) and by 1.2% with each millisecond increase in HRV (P < .05).
- Moderate to high stress risk increased by 3.6% with each beat-per-minute-increase in RHR (P < .01) and by 23% with each additional breath-per-minute increase in ARR (P < .01).
- Participants who identified as female, nonbinary, or transgender reported significantly higher stress throughout the study.
IN PRACTICE:
“The present work highlights the potential utility of monitoring sleep, suggesting that these measures may identify within individual changes that are concerning for stress. As the demand for mental health services grows, determining which wearable-derived sleep estimates provide information about well-being and can predict worsening mental health in young adults is an important area of study,” study authors wrote.
SOURCE:
The study, led by Laura S.P. Bloomfield, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, was published online in PLOS Digital Health.
LIMITATIONS:
The study focused on raw sleep measures; the researchers suggest that future studies evaluate additional sleep variables (eg, daytime naps), which have been associated with mental health in college students. In addition, the researchers did not have stress or sleep data before participants started college, so they could not assess the impact of starting college on participants’ sleep.
DISCLOSURES:
Bloomfield was supported by the Gund Fellowship and received a partial salary from the Mass Mutual Insurance Wellness Initiative. Other authors’ funding is reported in the original article.
A version of this article appeared on Medscape.com.