More daily steps translate to improved mental health and better sleep among college students

University students who aren't always enthused about walking across campus for class can take heart in new research that suggests lots of daily steps translates to improved mental health and better sleep.

The study by scientists in the Oregon State University College of Liberal Arts was published in Behavioral Sleep Medicine. Their ongoing research also led to findings, published in Chronobiology International, that show negative mental health outcomes are more likely among college students who stay up late and sleep in late.

Each study involved more than 200 students from two different universities.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, sleep problems are a common and damaging presence in the college student population. More than one-quarter of students, for example, experience insomnia.

Quality restorative sleep helps underpin cognitive function, mood regulation, metabolism and many other aspects of well-being, said OSU's Jessica Dietch, assistant professor of psychological science.

Poor sleep is detrimental to the health of college students. It has been consistently associated with increased stress and anxiety, as well as decreased academic performance."

Jessica Dietch, assistant professor of psychological science, OSU

Dietch is a licensed clinical psychologist who is board certified in behavioral sleep medicine.

In the step-count project, doctoral student John Richmond Sy sought to test whether the 10,000-steps recommendation had a connection with quality sleep.

"In essence, we found that more steps are associated with sleeping earlier and sleeping better," said Sy, now a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Arizona. "More steps, on average, resulted in earlier sleep timing, enhanced sleep quality and better mental health."

The study did not, however, reveal a minimum step-count threshold for improved sleep and mental health. The scientists also didn't find any association between step count and other sleep parameters such as total sleep time and sleep efficiency.

"Also, in future research we'd like to account for sedentariness, walking location and walking intensity," he said.

In the Chronobiology International paper, Sy, Dietch and collaborators at OSU and the University of Arizona looked at sleep midpoint – basically, halfway between the time you go to bed and the time you get up. If your average midpoint is 1 a.m., you're likely a morning lark; if it's 5 a.m., you're probably a night owl.

"When we think about sleep, we often think about duration and quality and overlook other features of sleep like timing and regularity," Sy said. "I was interested in whether sleep timing and variability were associated with mental health, which is particularly relevant for young adults who have the tendency to stay up late."

On average, Sy said, a late sleep midpoint was shown to be associated with worse mental health outcomes in general, while irregularity of sleep was only associated with depression.\

In addition to trying for a consistent sleep and wake time (even on weekends), Sy offers the following tips for people of all ages:

• Get bright light exposure in the morning. "It helps align your circadian rhythm to the 24-hour day," he said. "It helps wake you up in the morning and helps you fall asleep earlier in the evening and improve sleep quality." 
• Be active, which can improve both your sleep and mental health. "You might even try being active while getting your bright light exposure in the morning," Sy said.
• Avoid alcohol, cannabis, nicotine, caffeine and heavy meals close to bedtime; try to keep that time relaxing.
• Keep your bedroom cool, dark and quiet.
• Avoid activities unrelated to sleep or sex in your bed. "When we repeat a behavior at a certain location, we start to associate that place with that behavior and how that behavior makes us think and feel," he said. "If we do work or homework or use our phones to doomscroll while in bed, we start to associate the bed with alertness or anxiety instead of sleepiness."
• Don't rely solely on your Fitbit or Apple watch's evaluation of your sleep. "Wearables are useful to understand trends, but they are not infallible," Sy said. "Remember, the wrist is not the brain."