SLEEP DURATION AND DEPRESSION AMONG ADULTS: A META-ANALYSIS OF PROSPECTIVE STUDIES: Research Article: Sleep Duration and Depression
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Results from longitudinal studies on sleep duration and incidence of depression remain controversial. METHODS: PubMed and Web of Science updated on October 22, 2014 were searched for eligible publications. Pooled relative risks (RRs) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated using a random-effects model. RESULTS: Seven prospective studies were included, involving 25,271 participants for short sleep duration and 23,663 participants for long sleep duration. Compared with the normal sleep duration, the pooled RR for depression was 1.31 (95% CI, 1.04-1.64; I(2) = 0%) for the short sleep duration overall. For long sleep duration, the pooled RR was 1.42 (95% CI, 1.04-1.92; I(2) = 0%). The associations between short or long sleep duration and risk of depression did not substantially change in sensitivity and subgroup analyses. No evidence of publication bias was found. CONCLUSION: This meta-analysis indicates that short and long sleep duration was significantly associated with increased risk of depression in adults.
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Disrupted sleep is a common symptom of depressive episodes and increases the risk of MDD.
“Disrupted sleep is a common symptom of depressive episodes and increases the risk of MDD, 290”
From Major depressive disorder: hypothesis, mechanism, prevention and treatment (2024) · cites this paper as [290]
The Discussion reports that short and long sleep duration were significantly associated with subsequent depression in adults, supporting the risk-related part of the claim. The paper does not establish that disrupted sleep generally is a common symptom of depressive episodes, and its reported association does not establish a causal increase in risk specifically for MDD. Page numbers were not available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredPatients with symptoms of sleep disturbance have a greater risk of MDD occurrence and recurrence.
“Additionally, patients with symptoms of sleep disturbance have a greater risk of MDD occurrence and recurrence. 290 , 291”
From Major depressive disorder: hypothesis, mechanism, prevention and treatment (2024) · cites this paper as [290]
The Discussion reports that short and long sleep duration were associated with increased risk of subsequent depression in adults. The paper also mentions a poorer course of depressive disorders and the new onset of recurrent depression, but it does not establish a separate risk estimate for MDD recurrence. Its primary exposure is sleep duration, not sleep-disturbance symptoms generally. (LLM, conf=0.86)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredShort sleep duration (≤6 hours) is associated with significantly higher risk of depression (RR=1.31, 95% CI 1.04-1.64).
“individuals with both short (median reference value: ≤6 hours) and long (median reference value: ≥8 hours) average daily sleep duration were at significantly higher risk of depression over the 7.9 year average follow-up, with no heterogeneity between studies (short sleep: n=7, N=25,271, RR=1.31, 95% CI. 1.04-1.64; long sleep: n=5, N=23,663, RR=1.42, 95% CI: 1.04-1.92) 74 .”
From A meta-review of "lifestyle psychiatry": the role of exercise, smoking, diet and sleep in the prevention and treatment of mental disorders (2020) · cites this paper as [74]
The Short Sleep Duration and Depression section reports a significantly higher pooled risk of depression for short sleep (RR 1.31, 95% CI 1.04–1.64). However, the study-characteristics table uses different short-sleep cutoffs across the included studies, so the pooled estimate is not specifically an estimate for sleep duration ≤6 hours. The indexed passages provide section labels but no page numbers. (LLM, conf=0.87)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredLong sleep duration (≥8 hours) is associated with significantly higher risk of depression (RR=1.42, 95% CI 1.04-1.92).
“individuals with both short (median reference value: ≤6 hours) and long (median reference value: ≥8 hours) average daily sleep duration were at significantly higher risk of depression over the 7.9 year average follow-up, with no heterogeneity between studies (short sleep: n=7, N=25,271, RR=1.31, 95% CI. 1.04-1.64; long sleep: n=5, N=23,663, RR=1.42, 95% CI: 1.04-1.92) 74 .”
From A meta-review of "lifestyle psychiatry": the role of exercise, smoking, diet and sleep in the prevention and treatment of mental disorders (2020) · cites this paper as [74]
The Long Sleep Duration and Depression section reports a significantly elevated pooled risk for long versus normal sleep duration (RR 1.42, 95% CI 1.04–1.92). The study-characteristics table uses varying definitions of long sleep, including >8 and ≥9 hours, so the pooled result does not establish ≥8 hours as a uniform cutoff. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measuredMR can only test linear effects, whereas prospective meta-analyses indicate non-linear relations between sleep duration and mental illness.
“However, it must be noted that MR can only test linear effects, whereas prospective meta-analyses indicate non-linear relations between sleep duration and mental illness 74 .”
From A meta-review of "lifestyle psychiatry": the role of exercise, smoking, diet and sleep in the prevention and treatment of mental disorders (2020) · cites this paper as [74]
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- Authors
- Zhai, L., Zhang, H., & Zhang, D.
- Affiliations
- Qingdao University (CN)
- Corresponding author
- Zhang, Dongfeng
- Venue
- Depression and Anxiety
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2015-06-05
- Volume
- 32
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 664-670
- ISSN
- 1091-4269 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2162403058
- Cited by
- 786
- References
- 35
- Citations by year
- 2026: 66 · 2025: 100 · 2024: 113 · 2023: 108 · 2022: 112 · 2021: 82 · 2020: 83 · 2019: 48 · 2018: 36 · 2017: 20 · 2016: 16 · 2015: 2
- FWCI
- 3.19
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Depression and Anxiety (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Qingdao University
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and related disorders
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Sleep and Work-Related Fatigue
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Sleep and Wakefulness Research
- Keywords
- sleep duration, depression, short sleep duration, long sleep, depression risk, adults, prospective study
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Depression, Depressive Disorder, Female, Humans, Male, Prospective Studies, Risk, Sleep, Time Factors, Incidence
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