Examining the Relationship Between Weekend Catch-Up Sleep and Phenotypic Age Acceleration: Insights From a Cross-Sectional Study.

Background: Phenotypic age acceleration (PhenoAgeAccel) is a potential aging biomarker. While weekend catch-up sleep (WCS) is commonly practiced to compensate for weekday sleep deficits, its relationship with PhenoAgeAccel remains unclear.

Methods: In this cross-sectional study, we analyzed data from 7 683 participants in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. WCS duration was calculated as weekend sleep duration minus weekday sleep duration, and WCS was further defined as WCS duration >0 hour. Multivariable logistic regression adjusted for confounders and subgroup analyses by weekday sleep duration were employed to examine the relationship of WCS with PhenoAgeAccel.

Results: WCS is associated with a modulated risk of PhenoAgeAccel, contingent on the amount of WCS and regular weekday sleep. Specifically, engaging in 0-1 hour of WCS was associated with significantly lower odds of PhenoAgeAccel (odds ratio = 0.80, 95% confidence interval: 0.68-0.94, p = .007) compared to no WCS, particularly among individuals who averaged 7-8 hours of sleep on weekdays (odds ratio = 0.67, 95% confidence interval: 0.49-0.93, p = .016). Conversely, those sleeping less than 6 hours on weekdays benefited from extending WCS beyond 2 hours (odds ratio = 0.65, 95% confidence interval: 0.44-0.97, p = .036). No benefits were observed for those with more than 8 hours of weekday sleep.

Conclusions: WCS is associated with a reduced likelihood of PhenoAgeAccel among individuals with inadequate weekday sleep, particularly those sleeping less than 6 hours or between 7 and 8 hours on weekdays.