The association between psychological distress, sleep quality, and night eating syndrome (NES) among undergraduates in University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar campus

Chow, Hor Yan (2023) The association between psychological distress, sleep quality, and night eating syndrome (NES) among undergraduates in University Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), Kampar campus. Final Year Project, UTAR.

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Abstract

Night eating disorder (NES) is a ‘disorder of delayed circadian food intake’, an alarming eating disorder in Malaysia, typically among the university student population. It has been related to psychological distress like depression, anxiety and stress, and poor sleep quality, commonly found among university students. However, in Malaysia, there are still inadequate research studies. As a result, this study was conducted to study the association between NES, psychological distress, and sleep quality among university students. Two hundred and ten undergraduates were assessed in this cross-sectional study. The subjects were assessed through a self-administered questionnaire consisting of Night Eating Questionnaire (NEQ), Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 (DASS-21) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI). Spearman’s rank correlation test was used to study the association between NES, psychological distress, and sleep quality among the subjects. The prevalence of NES among the 210 subjects was 1.4%. Poor sleep quality, and psychological distress (depression, anxiety, stress) were prevalent at 47.66%, 30.5%, 39.1%, and 12.4%, respectively among the subjects. The result showed that NES was significantly associated with psychological distress and sleep quality. In conclusion, the prevalence of NES was low and found to be associated with psychological distress, and sleep quality among UTAR undergraduates in the Kampar campus. Early detection and management of mental health issues and sleep problems are required to prevent the development of NES.

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