Sleep and Obesity in Toddlers from Mexican American Families - PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT By the age of 3 years, Latino children are disproportionately affected by deficient sleep (short sleep duration, poorly timed sleep) and obesity. However, few studies have considered predictors of deficient sleep and its relationship with the disparate prevalence of early childhood obesity, specifically in toddlers (12 to 39 months) from Mexican American families. Because sleep is influenced by many different factors, this study will be one of the first to evaluate socioecological predictors, including environmental (e.g., societal, neighborhood, household), sociocultural (e.g., acculturation, beliefs), and parental factors (e.g., sleep-related parenting practices) in this population. While the relationship between deficient sleep and obesity has been found in children and adolescents, research with toddlers is limited by a lack of long-term studies and the use of parent report of child sleep (instead of an objective measure of sleep). Further, toddlers from Mexican American families are underrepresented in this research, despite being one of the largest growing ethnic minority populations in the U.S. The proposed study will address these knowledge gaps, answering critical questions about how different factors impact toddler sleep, and in turn whether toddler sleep contributes to the disparate prevalence of obesity in toddlers from Mexican American families. We have brought together a multidisciplinary team with substantial expertise in pediatric sleep, obesity, and socioecological contributors to health behaviors to (1) identify environmental, sociocultural, and parental factors contributing to deficient sleep, and (2) determine the relationship between sleep and weight status over a 2-year period in toddlers from Mexican American families. In order to ensure culturally-relevant measurement, we will use qualitative methods (focus groups) with Mexican American parents to adapt measures of parental sleep beliefs and sleep-related parenting practices as needed. We will then enroll 380 Mexican American families (mothers, fathers, other primary caregivers residing in the home) with 12 to 15 month old children living in a large metropolitan area to participate in 3 annual assessments. At each assessment, questionnaire and anthropometric data will be collected, and parent and toddler sleep will be measured by 7 consecutive days/nights of actigraphy (a wrist- watch sized device that objectively measures sleep). This innovative study will provide an in-depth evaluation of the ecology in which parent and toddler sleep are embedded, and the relationship of sleep with toddler weight status in the target population. To ensure the child’s entire family system is considered, mothers, fathers, and other primary caregivers in the home will be included. Altogether, study findings will contribute to the future development of family-focused, culturally-tailored, and contextually-informed early prevention programs focused on sleep and weight status in this underserved population. This study is a critical next step toward reducing health disparities and improving health outcomes among toddlers from Mexican American families.
