Association between sleep duration and the prevalence of atopic dermatitis and asthma in young adults.

BACKGROUND Sleep duration affects allergic diseases; however, this association requires further investigation. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the association between sleep duration and the prevalence of atopic dermatitis and asthma in young Korean adults. METHOD We analyzed data of 10,148 subjects (4,239 men; 5,909 women) aged 19-39 years from the Korean National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2008-2010. Self-reported sleep duration was categorized into five groups: ≤5h, 6h, 7h, 8h, and ≥9h. The prevalence of atopic dermatitis and asthma was examined based on a questionnaire and compared between participants from five sleep duration groups after adjusting for potential confounding factors, including model 1 [age], model 2 [model 1 + BMI, current smoking, current alcohol use, regular physical activity, household income, and serum 25(OH)D level], and model 3 [model 2 + stress levels]. RESULTS In female participants, a higher risk of atopic dermatitis was associated with sleep duration ≤5 hours [odds ratio (OR): 1.665, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.004-2.762; model 1], and ≥9 hours (OR, 1.746, 95% CI, 1.145-2.661; model 3), compared to a 7-hour sleep duration. Similarly, a higher risk of asthma was associated with sleep duration ≤5 hours and ≥9 hours (OR, 1.553, 95% CI, 1.023-2.359 and OR, 1.569, 95% CI, 1.048-2.349, respectively; model 3). In male participants, there was no significant association between sleep duration and the prevalence of atopic dermatitis or asthma. CONCLUSIONS Sleep duration ≤5 and ≥9 hours may be a risk factor for atopic dermatitis and asthma in young female adults.