New research based on National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data has revealed that individuals who engage in longer weekend catch-up sleep, meaning they sleep more on weekends, are significantly less likely to exhibit symptoms of depression. The association was notably stronger among men, individuals under the age of 65, and those who sleep fewer hours on weekdays. The study was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.
Depression is the most common mental disorder globally and the leading cause of disability worldwide. In the United States, statistics show that approximately 18.5% of individuals exhibited symptoms of depression in the past two weeks.
The primary symptoms of depression include persistent feelings of sadness and a lack of interest or pleasure in activities that were once enjoyable. This condition can lead to various emotional and physical problems that impair an individual’s ability to function both at work and at home. Symptoms may include changes in sleep, appetite, energy levels, concentration, daily behavior, or self-esteem. Depression often involves feelings of hopelessness, recurrent thoughts of death or suicide, or physical symptoms that cannot be explained by other medical conditions.
Study author Zhicheng Luo and colleagues wanted to investigate the association between weekend catch-up sleep and depressive symptoms. They noted that loss of sleep seems to be increasingly usual and inevitable in modern society, particularly during workdays. To address this, people often sleep longer on weekends to make up for the sleep deficit accumulated during the workweek. This behavior is prevalent among individuals who do not get sufficient sleep on weekdays due to work, study, or other commitments.
The authors analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, conducted in 2017 and 2020. This survey is part of a program designed to assess the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States and is conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics, which is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The analysis included data from 7,719 participants who completed an assessment of depressive symptoms using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and a questionnaire on sleep disorders. From this, the study authors derived data on weekend catch-up sleep by comparing the times participants reported falling asleep and waking up on weekdays and weekends.
Results showed that around 46% of participants slept longer on weekends i.e., practiced weekend catch-up sleep. These individuals tended to have shorter sleep times during weekdays compared to participants who did not practice weekend catch-up sleep.
Overall, those who slept longer on weekends tended to exhibit lower levels of depressive symptoms. A more detailed examination of the data revealed that participants who slept one or two hours longer on weekends had fewer depressive symptoms compared to those who did not engage in weekend catch-up sleep. They were approximately 38-46% less likely to exhibit depressive symptoms. This reduction in depressive symptoms did not apply to individuals who reported catch-up sleep durations of three hours or more.
Further analysis showed that the link between weekend catch-up sleep and depressive symptoms were mainly present in individuals who slept 6 hours or less in weekdays. The association also tended to be stronger in men and adults below 65 years of age.
“In summary, WCS [weekend catch-up sleep] duration of 0 -2 hours was negatively associated with depressive symptoms or PHQ-9 score [an assessment of depression]. Further analyses suggested that the non-linear association presented L-shaped [a pattern of association in which there is a threshold after which the association disappears, the threshold was 3 hours of catch-up sleep in this case],” the study authors concluded.
In addition, the prominent beneficial effects on depressive symptoms were mainly observed among men, adults aged younger than 65 years, and those with short weekday sleep duration. Our findings may provide additional epidemiological evidence for the effects of sleep on depressive symptoms, and further studies are needed for underlying biological mechanisms of WCS related to depressive symptoms.”
The study sheds light on the links between sleep patterns and depressive symptoms. However, it is important to note that the design of this study does not allow for any cause-and-effect conclusions. While it is possible that the practice of catch-up sleep reduces the likelihood of developing depression, it is also possible that individuals who are not depressed are better able to remain active during the weekdays and organize their time to allow for sufficient catch-up sleep. It is also conceivable that both depressive symptoms and the observed sleep patterns are consequences of factors not considered in the study.
The paper, “Association between weekend catch-up sleep and depressive symptoms in American adults: Finding from NHANES 2017–2020,” was authored by Zhicheng Luo, Tingting Wang, Wenqiong Wu, Shipeng Yan, and Lizhang Chen.
