239 Changes in Children’s Schoolyear and Summer Sleep during the COVID-19 Pandemic Free

In spring 2020, elementary schools closed to minimize the spread of COVID-19. Questionnaire data suggest children’s sleep was impacted during the pandemic, yet device-based data (i.e. accelerometry) on this topic is lacking. The purpose of this study was to examine children’s sleep during the COVID-19 pandemic (i.e. spring and summer 2020) compared to previous data collected from the same children during each of the two previous years (spring and summer 2018 and 2019).

68 children (age = 9.9±1.2 years, 56% Black, 53% male) previously recruited for an observational cohort study wore a Fitbit Charge 2 on their wrist during the spring and summer from 2018-2020 (i.e. six 30-day measurement periods). We used multilevel mixed models to examine how children’s sleep patterns changed during the pandemic accounting for previous trajectory (i.e. 2018 to 2019). Models included age, sex, and race as covariates.

Children had an average of 84 nights of sleep data across all six 30-day measurement periods. In the spring of the pandemic, children slept 24.6 minutes more (95%CI = 11.6, 37.5) compared to previous springs. During the pandemic summer, they slept 40.0 minutes more (95%CI = 24.6, 58.5) compared to previous summers. Sleep midpoint was 117.1 minutes later (95%CI = 103.6, 130.6) in the spring during the pandemic and 46.0 minutes later (95% CI = 26.9, 65.2) in the summer during the pandemic compared to previous years. Sleep efficiency improved slightly by 1.3% (95% CI = 0.7, 1.9) and 3.6% (95% CI = 2.7, 4.5) in spring and summer, respectively, during the pandemic compared to previous years.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, children slept longer after accounting for previous developmental trends. Notably, the shift in sleep timing during the pandemic was nearly two hours later in the spring compared to previous years, potentially due to the lack of structure usually provided by school. Later sleep timing is independently associated with poor health behaviors (e.g., nutrition, physical activity, screen time). Future studies should examine if these changes in sleep persist over time and have potential long-term effects on children’s health.

R21HD095164 (PI Weaver) & UofSC COVID-19 Research Initiative Grant (PI Armstrong)