Effects of sleep on breakfast behaviors in recently unemployed adults.

OBJECTIVES: Skipping meals is linked to negative cardiometabolic health outcomes. Few studies have examined the effects of breakfast skipping after disruptive life events, like job loss. The present analyses examine whether sleep timing, duration, and continuity are associated with breakfast eating among 186 adults who recently (past 90 days) experienced involuntary unemployment from the Assessing Daily Activity Patterns Through Occupational Transitions (ADAPT) study. METHODS: We conducted both cross-sectional and 18-month longitudinal analyses to assess the relationship between actigraphic sleep after job loss and breakfast eating. RESULTS: Later sleep timing was associated with a lower percentage of days breakfast was eaten at baseline (B = -0.09, SE = 0.02, P < .001) and longitudinally over 18 months (estimate = -0.04; SE = 0.02; P < .05). No other sleep indices were associated with breakfast consumption cross-sectionally or prospectively. CONCLUSIONS: Unemployed adults with a delay in sleep timing are more likely to skip breakfast than adults with an advancement in sleep timing. Future studies are necessary to test chronobiological mechanisms by which sleep timing might impact breakfast eating. With the understanding that sleep timing is linked to breakfast eating, the advancement of sleep timing may provide a pathway for the promotion of breakfast eating, ultimately preventing cardiometabolic disease.

The impact of social rhythm and sleep disruptions on waist circumference after job loss: A prospective 18-month study.

OBJECTIVE: This study prospectively examined change in waist circumference (WC) as a function of daily social rhythms and sleep in the aftermath of involuntary job loss. It was hypothesized that disrupted social rhythms and fragmented/short sleep after job loss would independently predict gains in WC over 18 months and that resiliency to WC gain would be conferred by the converse. METHODS: Eligible participants (n = 191) completed six visits that included standardized measurements of WC. At the baseline visit, participants completed the social rhythm metric and daily sleep diary and wore an actigraph on their nondominant wrist each day for a period of 2 weeks. RESULTS: When controlling for obesity and other covariates, WC trajectories decreased for individuals with more consistent social rhythms, more activities in their sdiocial rhythms, and higher sleep quality after job loss. WC trajectories did not change for individuals with lower scores on these indicators. CONCLUSIONS: The frequency and consistency of social rhythms after job loss play a key role in WC loss. These findings support the implementation of social rhythm interventions after job loss, a potentially sensitive time for the establishment of new daily routines that have an impact on metabolic health.

Evaluation of call volume and negative emotions in emergency response system telecommunicators: a prospective, intensive longitudinal investigation.

Emergency telecommunicators are essential first responders tasked with coordinated communication within the emergency response system (ERS). Despite their exposure to significant job demands, little is known about the effect of call load or call type on emotional state within these workers. Therefore, we employed a prospective, intensive longitudinal design to examine whether emergency-eligible call volume would lead to higher intensity negative emotions post-shift when controlling for pre-shift negative emotions and a number of other work and individual factors, including work duration and night shift. A total of 47 ERS telecommunicators (dispatchers, operators, other) completed ratings over working shifts within a two-week period. Call frequency was gathered through the agency Computer-Assisted Dispatch database. Negative emotions of irritation, stress, worry, and fatigue were measured through the Visual Analogue Scale administered before and after shift. Mixed linear modeling demonstrated that telecommunicators who received more calls per hour (Estimate = 3.56, SE = 1.44, p < 0.05) and more-than-usual calls per hour (Estimate = 1.97, SE = .94, p < 0.05) had higher levels of post-shift irritability. Longer-than-usual working hours also predicted higher levels of post-shift irritability (Estimate = 1.32, SE = 0.59, p < 0.05). Call volume did not predict other negative emotions, although secondary analyses demonstrated that a larger number of chronic calls lead to greater levels of post-shift worry. ERS telecommunication agencies aiming to reduce negative emotions in workers may benefit from implementing policies and programs that target working hours, call load, and work-life balance.

Impact of Recent Job Loss on Sleep, Energy Consumption and Diet.

To examine how sleep quality and sleep duration affect caloric intake among those experiencing involuntary job loss. METHODS: Adequate sleep and self reported dietary recall data from the Assessing Daily Activity Patterns through Occupational Transitions (ADAPT) study was analysed. Primary sleep indices used were total sleep time, time spent in bed after final awakening, and sleep quality as measured by the Daily Sleep Diary (DSD). Mean Energy consumption (MEC) was the primary nutritional index. Secondary indices included diet quality using the Health Eating Index 2015 (HEI), and self-reported intake of protein, carbohydrates and fats. RESULTS: The study participants were comprised mainly of women (61%) and non-Hispanic white. The participants had at least 2 years of college education and mean body mass index of 30.2±8.08 (kg/m 2). The average time in bed was 541.8 (9.0 hrs) ±77.55 minutes and total sleep time was 461.1 (7.6 hrs) ±56.49 minutes. Mean sleep efficiency was 91±6%, self-reported sleep quality was 2.40±0.57 (0-4 scale, 4 = very good), and minutes earlier than planned morning awakening were 14.36±24.15. Mean HEI score was 47.41±10.92. Although the MEC was below national average for both men and women, male sex was associated with higher MEC. In a fully adjusted model sleep quality was positively associated with MEC. CONCLUSION: Daily overall assessments of sleep quality among recently unemployed persons were positively associated with mean energy consumption. Additionally, the diet quality of unemployed persons was found to be unhealthier than the average American and consistent with the relationship between poor socioeconomic status and lower diet quality.

A controlled trial of two mind-body interventions for grief in widows and widowers.

Objective: Following bereavement, yearning and grief rumination are repetitive cognitive processes that can lead to disordered grief. Mindfulness training (MT) has been shown to reduce maladaptive repetitive thought. The current quasi-randomized controlled trial examined the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of MT for bereavement-related grief. Method: Ninety-five widow(er)s (Mage = 67.5, 79% women, 98% White) between 6 months to 4 years post-loss were assigned to a 6-week MT intervention or a progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) intervention, or a wait-list condition. Outcome measures were grief severity (Revised Inventory of Complicated Grief), yearning (Yearning in Situations of Loss), rumination (Utrecht Grief Rumination Scale), and decentering (Experiences Questionnaire-Decentering) assessed at baseline, Weeks 2 and 4 of intervention, post-intervention, and 1-month post-intervention. Growth curve analysis examined group differences in rates of improvement in outcomes through follow-up and associations with improvement in grief severity. Results: The MT and PMR groups showed significant rates of decline in grief severity and yearning, though only the PMR group showed a greater rate of decline in grief severity than wait-list. All groups showed significant rates of decline in grief rumination. The PMR and wait-list groups showed significant rates of increase in decentering compared to the MT group. Conclusions: Results support the feasibility and acceptability of MT and PMR for widow(er)s as well as the preliminary efficacy of PMR for improving grief severity in widow(er)s compared to a wait-list control condition. With replication, PMR could be a standalone intervention for non-disordered grief or a component of treatment for disordered grief. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

Inconsistent social rhythms are associated with abdominal adiposity after involuntary job loss: An observational study.

OBJECTIVE: Unemployment is an established risk factor for obesity. However, few studies have examined obesity-related health behavior after involuntary job loss specifically. Job loss confers a disruption in daily time structure that could lead to negative metabolic and psychological outcomes through chronobiological mechanisms. This study examines whether individuals with unstable social rhythms after involuntary job loss present with higher abdominal adiposity than individuals with more consistent social rhythms and whether this relationship varies as a function of depressive symptoms. METHODS: Cross-sectional baseline data (n = 191) from the ongoing Assessing Daily Activity Patterns in occupational Transitions (ADAPT) study were analyzed using linear regression techniques. Participants completed the Social Rhythm Metric-17 (SRM) daily over 2 weeks. They also completed the Beck Depression Inventory II (BDI-II) and participated in standardized waist circumference measurements (cm). RESULTS: A significant interaction emerged between SRM and BDI-II demonstrating that less consistent social rhythms were associated with larger waist circumference at lower levels of depressive symptoms. Additional exploratory analyses demonstrated a positive association between the number of daily activities performed alone and waist circumference when controlling for symptoms of depression. CONCLUSION: These findings are the first to demonstrate a relationship between social rhythm stability and abdominal adiposity in adults who have recently, involuntarily lost their jobs. Results highlight the moderating role of depressive symptoms on daily routine in studies of metabolic health. Future prospective analysis is necessary to examine causal pathways.