Association between Daytime Napping and Chronic Diseases in China.

Objectives: To explore the relationship between daytime napping and incidence of chronic diseases over the past 6 months among adults in China.

Methods: Based on data collected from 13,469 respondents over age 40 in the Chinese Family Panel Studies in 2010, logistic regression models were estimated to examine the association between daytime napping and the incidence of any chronic diseases and 3 specific chronic diseases (hypertension, diabetes, and heart disease) after adjusting for confounders. Differences of risks by sex and age were also investigated.

Results: In the sample, 50.8% were women and 32.2% were over 60 years old. Adjusted estimates show respondents with daytime napping had elevated odds of developing any chronic diseases, hypertension, and diabetes compared to those who did not nap; having over 60 minutes of daytime napping had weaker association compared with shorter duration of daytime napping. The association between daytime napping and hypertension was found in women but not in men.

Conclusions: Daytime napping appears to be associated with elevated risk of incidence of any chronic diseases, hypertension, and diabetes.