Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

Methods

Nocturnal sleep-related variables from 24-h free-living waist-worn accelerometry: International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment

International Journal of Obesity Supplements volume 5, pages S47–S52 (2015)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objectives:

We describe the process of identifying and defining nocturnal sleep-related variables (for example, movement/non-movement indicators of sleep efficiency, waking episodes, midpoint and so on) using the unique 24-h waist-worn free-living accelerometer data collected in the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment (ISCOLE).

Methods:

Seven consecutive days of 24-h waist-worn accelerometer (GT3X+, ActiGraph LLC) data were collected from over 500 children at each site. An expert subgroup of the research team with accelerometry expertize, frontline data collectors and data managers met on several occasions to categorize and operationally define nocturnal accelerometer signal data patterns. The iterative process was informed by the raw data drawn from a sub set of the US data, and culminated in a refined and replicable delineated definition for each identified nocturnal sleep-related variable. Ultimately based on 6318 participants from all 12 ISCOLE sites with valid total sleep episode time (TSET), we report average clock times for nocturnal sleep onset, offset and midpoint in addition to sleep period time, TSET and restful sleep efficiency (among other derived variables).

Results:

Nocturnal sleep onset occurred at 2218 hours and nocturnal sleep offset at 0707 hours. The mean midpoint was 0243 hours. The sleep period time of 529.6 min (8.8 h) was typically accumulated in a single episode, making the average TSET very similar in duration (529.0 min). The mean restful sleep efficiency ranged from 86.8% (based on absolute non-movement of 0 counts per minute) to 96.0% (based on relative non-movement of <100 counts per minute).

Conclusions:

These variables extend the potential of field-based 24-h waist-worn accelerometry to distinguish and categorize the underlying robust patterns of movement/non-movement signals conveying magnitude, duration, frequency and periodicity during the nocturnal sleep period.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Get just this article for as long as you need it

$39.95

Learn more

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1

References

  1. Meltzer LJ, Montgomery-Downs HE, Insana SP, Walsh CM . Use of actigraphy for assessment in pediatric sleep research. Sleep Med Rev 2012; 16: 463–475.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  2. Kinder JR, Lee KA, Thompson H, Hicks K, Topp K, Madsen KA . Validation of a hip-worn accelerometer in measuring sleep time in children. J Pediatr Nurs 2012; 27: 127–133.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Cain KL, Sallis JF, Conway TL, Van Dyck D, Calhoon L . Using accelerometers in youth physical activity studies: a review of methods. J Phys Act Health 2013; 10: 437–450.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  4. Swartz AM, Strath SJ, Bassett Jr DR, O'Brien WL, King GA, Ainsworth BE . Estimation of energy expenditure using CSA accelerometers at hip and wrist sites. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2000; 32: S450–S456.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  5. Rosenberger ME, Haskell WL, Albinali F, Mota S, Nawyn J, Intille S . Estimating activity and sedentary behavior from an accelerometer on the hip or wrist. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2013; 45: 964–975.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Tudor-Locke C, Barreira TV, Schuna Jr JM . Comparison of step outputs for waist and wrist accelerometer attachment sites. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2015; 47: 839–842.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. Tudor-Locke C, Camhi SM, Troiano RP . A catalog of rules, variables, and definitions applied to accelerometer data in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, 2003-2006. Prev Chronic Dis 2012; 9: E113.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  8. Troiano RP, Berrigan D, Dodd KW, Masse LC, Tilert T, McDowell M . Physical activity in the United States measured by accelerometer. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2008; 40: 181–188.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  9. Tudor-Locke C, Barreira TV, Schuna JM Jr., Mire EF, Katzmarzyk PT . Fully automated waist-worn accelerometer algorithm for detecting children's sleep period time separate from 24-hour physical activity or sedentary behaviors. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab 2014; 39: 53–57.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Tudor-Locke C, Barreira TV, Schuna Jr JM, Mire EF, Chaput JP, Fogelholm M et al. Improving wear time compliance with a 24-hour waist-worn accelerometer protocol in the International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment (ISCOLE). Int J Behav Nutr Phys Act 2015; 12: 172.

    Google Scholar 

  11. Sadeh A, Sharkey KM, Carskadon MA . Activity-based sleep-wake identification: an empirical test of methodological issues. Sleep 1994; 17: 201–207.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  12. Barreira TV, Schuna Jr JM, Mire EF, Katzmarzyk PT, Chaput JP, Leduc G et al. Identifying Children's Nocturnal Sleep Using 24-h Waist Accelerometry. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2015; 47: 937–943.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Katzmarzyk PT, Barreira TV, Broyles ST, Champagne CM, Chaput J-P, Fogelholm M et al. The International Study of Childhood Obesity Lifestyle and the Environment (ISCOLE): design and methods. BMC Public Health 2013; 13: 900.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  14. Meltzer LJ, Westin AM . A comparison of actigraphy scoring rules used in pediatric research. Sleep Med 2011; 12: 793–796.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  15. Matthews CE, Chen KY, Freedson PS, Buchowski MS, Beech BM, Pate RR et al. Amount of time spent in sedentary behaviors in the United States, 2003-2004. Am J Epidemiol 2008; 167: 875–881.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  16. Mark AE, Janssen I . Dose-response relation between physical activity and blood pressure in youth. Med Sci Sports Exerc 2008; 40: 1007–1012.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  17. Scholle S, Beyer U, Bernhard M, Eichholz S, Erler T, Graness P et al. Normative values of polysomnographic parameters in childhood and adolescence: quantitative sleep parameters. Sleep Med 2011; 12: 542–549.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Hjorth MF, Chaput JP, Damsgaard CT, Dalskov S, Michaelsen KF, Tetens I et al. Measure of sleep and physical activity by a single accelerometer: can a waist-worn actigraph adequately measure sleep in children. Sleep Biol Rhythms 2012; 10: 328–335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Galland B, Meredith-Jones K, Terrill P, Taylor R . Challenges and emerging technologies within the field of pediatric actigraphy. Front Psychiatry 2014; 5: 99.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  20. Arbabi T, Vollmer C, Dorfler T, Randler C . The influence of chronotype and intelligence on academic achievement in primary school is mediated by conscientiousness, midpoint of sleep and motivation. Chronobiol Int 2015; 32: 349–357.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  21. Hirshkowitz M, Whiton K, Albert SM, Alessi CA, Bruni O, DonCarlos L et al. National Sleep Foundation’s sleep time duration recommendations: methodology and results summary. Sleep Health 2015; 1: 40–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  22. Matricciani L, Blunden S, Rigney G, Williams MT, Olds TS . Children's sleep needs: is there sufficient evidence to recommend optimal sleep for children? Sleep 2013; 36: 527–534.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  23. Chamorro R, Algarin C, Garrido M, Causa L, Held C, Lozoff B et al. Night time sleep macrostructure is altered in otherwise healthy 10-year-old overweight children. Int J Obes (Lond) 2014; 38: 1120–1125.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Chaput JP, Lambert M, Gray-Donald K, McGrath JJ, Tremblay MS, O'Loughlin J et al. Short sleep duration is independently associated with overweight and obesity in Quebec children. Can J Public Health 2011; 102: 369–374.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  25. Lazaratou H, Soldatou A, Dikeos D . Medical comorbidity of sleep disorders in children and adolescents. Curr Opin Psychiatry 2012; 25: 391–397.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We thank the ISCOLE External Advisory Board and the ISCOLE participants and their families who made this study possible. A membership list of the ISCOLE Research Group and External Advisory Board is included in Katzmarzyk et al. (this issue). ISCOLE was funded by The Coca-Cola Company.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Kinesiology, School of Public Health and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA

    C Tudor-Locke

  2. Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, LA, USA

    C Tudor-Locke, E F Mire, T V Barreira, J M Schuna, G Hu, T S Church & P T Katzmarzyk

  3. Department of Exercise Science, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA

    T V Barreira

  4. Oregon State University, Corvallis, USA

    J M Schuna

  5. Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada

    J-P Chaput & M S Tremblay

  6. Department of Food and Environmental Sciences, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland

    M Fogelholm

  7. St Johns Research Institute, Bangalore, India

    A Kurpad & R Kuriyan

  8. Department of Human Biology, Division of Exercise Science and Sports Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

    E V Lambert

  9. Alliance for Research in Exercise Nutrition and Activity (ARENA), School of Health Sciences, University of South Australia, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

    C Maher & T Olds

  10. CIFI2D, Faculdade de Desporto, University of Porto, Porto, Portugal

    J Maia

  11. Centro de Estudos do Laboratório de Aptidão Física de São Caetano do Sul (CELAFISCS), Sao Paulo, Brazil

    V Matsudo

  12. Department of Recreation Management and Exercise Science, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya

    V Onywera

  13. School of Medicine, Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia

    O L Sarmiento

  14. Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, UK

    M Standage

  15. Tianjin Women’s and Children’s Health Center, Tianjin, China

    P Zhao

Authors
  1. C Tudor-Locke
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. E F Mire
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. T V Barreira
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. J M Schuna
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. J-P Chaput
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. M Fogelholm
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. G Hu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. A Kurpad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. R Kuriyan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. E V Lambert
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  11. C Maher
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  12. J Maia
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  13. V Matsudo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  14. T Olds
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  15. V Onywera
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  16. O L Sarmiento
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  17. M Standage
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  18. M S Tremblay
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  19. P Zhao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  20. T S Church
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  21. P T Katzmarzyk
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Consortia

for the ISCOLE Research Group

Corresponding author

Correspondence to C Tudor-Locke.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

MF has received a research grant from Fazer Finland and has received an honorarium for speaking for Merck. AK has been a member of the Advisory Boards of Dupont and McCain Foods. RK has received a research grant from Abbott Nutrition Research and Development. VM is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of Actigraph and has received an honorarium for speaking for The Coca-Cola Company. TO has received an honorarium for speaking for The Coca-Cola Company. The remaining authors declare no conflict of interest.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Tudor-Locke, C., Mire, E., Barreira, T. et al. Nocturnal sleep-related variables from 24-h free-living waist-worn accelerometry: International Study of Childhood Obesity, Lifestyle and the Environment. Int J Obes Supp 5 (Suppl 2), S47–S52 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/ijosup.2015.19

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ijosup.2015.19

This article is cited by

Search

Advanced search

Quick links