Diet and sleep, which are essential for human survival, are interrelated. However, recently, various services and mobile applications have been introduced for the self-management of health, allowing users to record and gather data on their eating and sleeping habits.
In response to these trends, researchers from the University of Tsukuba conducted a large-scale study using data recorded in smartphone applications related to diet management and sleep. The research used data from people who simultaneously used the dietary management application “ASKEN” (Asken, Inc.) and the sleep game application Pokémon Sleep (Pokémon, Inc.).
The analysis focused on 14 nutrients quantified from daily diet records in ASKEN and the total sleep time, sleep latency, and wakefulness after sleep onset obtained from the three-axis accelerometer data built into smartphones in Pokémon Sleep. Data from 4,825 users, who gave their consent, were analyzed considering the interdependence of the major nutrients.
The results, published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research, showed that the higher the total energy, the shorter the total sleep time and the longer the wakefulness after sleep onset.
Participants with high protein intake had longer total sleep time, and participants with high intake of monounsaturated fatty acid and polyunsaturated fatty acids and those with high intake of polyunsaturated fatty acids have shorter sleep latency and wakefulness after sleep onset, whereas those with high intake of monounsaturated fatty acids have longer sleep latency and wakefulness after sleep onset.
Participants with high dietary fiber intake have longer total sleep time and shorter sleep latency and wakefulness after sleep onset, and participants with high sodium intake (high sodium-to-potassium ratio) had shorter total sleep time and longer sleep latency and wakefulness after sleep onset.
More information:
Jaehoon Seol et al, Relationship Among Macronutrients, Dietary Components, and Objective Sleep Variables Measured by Smartphone Apps: Real-World Cross-Sectional Study, Journal of Medical Internet Research (2025). DOI: 10.2196/64749
Provided by
University of Tsukuba
Citation:
Pokémon Sleep app helps reveal relationship between sleep and nutrition (2025, February 14)
