Are children like werewolves?: Full moon and its association with sleep and activity behaviors in an international sample of children

Jean Philippe Chaput; Madyson Weippert; Allana G.W. LeBlanc; Mads Fiil Hjorth; Kim Fleischer Michaelsen; Peter T. Katzmarzyk; Mark S. Tremblay; Tiago V. Barreira; Stephanie T. Broyles; Mikael Fogelholm; Gang Hu; Rebecca Kuriyan; Anura Vishwanath Kurpad; Estelle Victoria Lambert; Carol Ann Maher; José António Maia; Victor Keihan Matsudo; Tim Olds; Vincent Ochieng Onywera; Olga Sarmiento; Martyn Standage; Catrine E. Tudor- Locke; Pei Zhao; Anders M. Sjödin; ISCOLE Research Group; Timothy S. Church; Denise G. Lambert; Ben P. Butitta; Catherine M. Champagne; Shannon H. Cocreham; Kara N. Dentro; Katy Drazba; Deirdre Deirdre M. Harrington; William D. Johnson; Dione Milauskas; Emily F. Mire; Allison Tohme; Ruben Q. Rodarte; John Luopa; Rebecca H. Neiberg; Scott Rushing; Lucy Kate Lewis; Katia Ferrar; Effie Georgiadis; Rebecca Megan Stanley; Sandra Mahecha Matsudo; Timóteo Leandro Araújo; Luís Carlos De Oliveira; Leandro Rezende; Luis Fabiano; Diogo Bezerra; Gerson Luis Ferrari; Priscilla Bélanger; Michael Marc Borghese; Charles Boyer; Claire E. Francis; Geneviève Leduc; Chengming Diao; Wei Li; Weiqin Li; Enquing qing Liu; Gongshu Liu; Hongyan Liu; Jian Ma; Yijuan Qiao; Huiguang Tian; Yue Wang; Tao Zhang; Fuxia Zhang; Julio Acosta; Yalta Alvira; María Paula Díaz; Rocio Gámez; Maria Paula Garcia; Luis Guillermo Gómez; Lisseth Heras González; Silvia A. González; Carlos Grijalba; Leidys Gutiérrez; David Leal; Nicolás Lemus; Etelvina Mahecha; Maria Paula Mahecha; Rosalba Mahecha; Andrea Ramírez Varela; Paola Ríos; Andres Suarez; Camilo A. Triana; Elli Hovi; Jemina Kivelä; Sari M. Räsänen; Sanna Roito; Taru Saloheimo; Leena Valta; Deepa P. Lokesh; Michelle Stephanie D'Almeida; R. Annie Mattilda; R. Lygia Correa; D. Vijay; Lucy Joy Wachira; Stella Kagwiria Muthuri; Alessandra Silva Borges; Sofia Oliveira Sá Cachada; Raquel Nichele De Chaves; Thayse Natacha Gomes; Sara Isabel Pereira; Daniel Monteiro E Santos; Fernanda Karina Dos Santos; Pedro Gil Da Silva; Michele Caroline De Souza; Matthew April; Monika Uys; Nirmala Naidoo; Nandi Synyanya; Madelaine T. Carstens; Sean P. Cumming; Clemens Drenowatz; Lydia G. Emm; Fiona Bridget Gillison; Julia Kirstey Zakrzewski; Ashley Braud; Sheletta G. Donatto; Corbin Lemon; Ana Jackson; Ashunti Pearson; Gina Pennington; Daniel Ragus; Ryan C. Roubion; John M. Schuna; Derek Wiltz; Alan Mark Batterham; Jacqueline Kerr; Michael W. Pratt; Angelo Pietrobelli

doi:10.3389/fped.2016.00024

Are children like werewolves? Full moon and its association with sleep and activity behaviors in an international sample of children

Jean Philippe Chaput, Madyson Weippert, Allana G.W. LeBlanc, Mads Fiil Hjorth, Kim Fleischer Michaelsen, Peter T. Katzmarzyk, Mark S. Tremblay, Tiago V. Barreira, Stephanie T. Broyles, Mikael Fogelholm, Gang Hu, Rebecca Kuriyan, Anura Vishwanath Kurpad, Estelle Victoria Lambert, Carol Ann Maher, José António Maia, Victor Keihan Matsudo, Tim Olds, Vincent Ochieng Onywera, Olga SarmientoMartyn Standage, Catrine E. Tudor- Locke, Pei Zhao, Anders M. Sjödin, ISCOLE Research Group, Timothy S. Church, Denise G. Lambert, Ben P. Butitta, Catherine M. Champagne, Shannon H. Cocreham, Kara N. Dentro, Katy Drazba, Deirdre Deirdre M. Harrington, William D. Johnson, Dione Milauskas, Emily F. Mire, Allison Tohme, Ruben Q. Rodarte, John Luopa, Rebecca H. Neiberg, Scott Rushing, Lucy Kate Lewis, Katia Ferrar, Effie Georgiadis, Rebecca Megan Stanley, Sandra Mahecha Matsudo, Timóteo Leandro Araújo, Luís Carlos De Oliveira, Leandro Rezende, Luis Fabiano, Diogo Bezerra, Gerson Luis Ferrari, Priscilla Bélanger, Michael Marc Borghese, Charles Boyer, Claire E. Francis, Geneviève Leduc, Chengming Diao, Wei Li, Weiqin Li, Enquing qing Liu, Gongshu Liu, Hongyan Liu, Jian Ma, Yijuan Qiao, Huiguang Tian, Yue Wang, Tao Zhang, Fuxia Zhang, Julio Acosta, Yalta Alvira, María Paula Díaz, Rocio Gámez, Maria Paula Garcia, Luis Guillermo Gómez, Lisseth Heras González, Silvia A. González, Carlos Grijalba, Leidys Gutiérrez, David Leal, Nicolás Lemus, Etelvina Mahecha, Maria Paula Mahecha, Rosalba Mahecha, Andrea Ramírez Varela, Paola Ríos, Andres Suarez, Camilo A. Triana, Elli Hovi, Jemina Kivelä, Sari M. Räsänen, Sanna Roito, Taru Saloheimo, Leena Valta, Deepa P. Lokesh, Michelle Stephanie D'Almeida, R. Annie Mattilda, R. Lygia Correa, D. Vijay, Lucy Joy Wachira, Stella Kagwiria Muthuri, Alessandra Silva Borges, Sofia Oliveira Sá Cachada, Raquel Nichele De Chaves, Thayse Natacha Gomes, Sara Isabel Pereira, Daniel Monteiro E Santos, Fernanda Karina Dos Santos, Pedro Gil Da Silva, Michele Caroline De Souza, Matthew April, Monika Uys, Nirmala Naidoo, Nandi Synyanya, Madelaine T. Carstens, Sean P. Cumming, Clemens Drenowatz, Lydia G. Emm, Fiona Bridget Gillison, Julia Kirstey Zakrzewski, Ashley Braud, Sheletta G. Donatto, Corbin Lemon, Ana Jackson, Ashunti Pearson, Gina Pennington, Daniel Ragus, Ryan C. Roubion, John M. Schuna, Derek Wiltz, Alan Mark Batterham, Jacqueline Kerr, Michael W. Pratt, Angelo Pietrobelli

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Abstract

In order to verify if the full moon is associated with sleep and activity behaviors, we used a 12-country study providing 33,710 24-h accelerometer recordings of sleep and activity. The present observational, cross-sectional study included 5812 children ages 9-11 years from study sites that represented all inhabited continents and wide ranges of human development (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, India, Kenya, Portugal, South Africa, United Kingdom, and United States). Three moon phases were used in this analysis: full moon (±4 days; reference), half moon (±5-9 days), and new moon (±10-14 days) from nearest full moon. Nocturnal sleep duration, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and total sedentary time (SED) were monitored over seven consecutive days using a waist-worn accelerometer worn 24 h a day. Only sleep duration was found to significantly differ between moon phases (~5 min/night shorter during full moon compared to new moon). Differences in MVPA, LPA, and SED between moon phases were negligible and non-significant (< 2 min/day difference). There was no difference in the associations between study sites. In conclusion, sleep duration was 1% shorter at full moon compared to new moon, while activity behaviors were not significantly associated with the lunar cycle in this global sample of children. Whether this seemingly minimal difference is clinically meaningful is questionable.

Original language	English
Article number	24
Number of pages	6
Journal	Frontiers in Pediatrics
Volume	4
Issue number	MAR
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2016.00024
Publication status	Published - 24 Mar 2016
Externally published	Yes

Bibliographical note

Open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in
other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited
and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted
academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not
comply with these terms.

Keywords

Children
Lunar cycle
Moon
Physical activity
Sedentary behavior
Sleep

Access to Document

10.3389/fped.2016.00024Licence: CC BY

Published VersionFinal published version, 182 KBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

Chaput, J. P., Weippert, M., LeBlanc, A. G. W., Hjorth, M. F., Michaelsen, K. F., Katzmarzyk, P. T., Tremblay, M. S., Barreira, T. V., Broyles, S. T., Fogelholm, M., Hu, G., Kuriyan, R., Kurpad, A. V., Lambert, E. V., Maher, C. A., Maia, J. A., Matsudo, V. K., Olds, T., Onywera, V. O., ... Pietrobelli, A. (2016). Are children like werewolves? Full moon and its association with sleep and activity behaviors in an international sample of children. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 4(MAR), [24]. https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2016.00024

@article{3908f01f4ef64024a0a0f154f7467ee7,

title = "Are children like werewolves?: Full moon and its association with sleep and activity behaviors in an international sample of children",

abstract = "In order to verify if the full moon is associated with sleep and activity behaviors, we used a 12-country study providing 33,710 24-h accelerometer recordings of sleep and activity. The present observational, cross-sectional study included 5812 children ages 9-11 years from study sites that represented all inhabited continents and wide ranges of human development (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, India, Kenya, Portugal, South Africa, United Kingdom, and United States). Three moon phases were used in this analysis: full moon (±4 days; reference), half moon (±5-9 days), and new moon (±10-14 days) from nearest full moon. Nocturnal sleep duration, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and total sedentary time (SED) were monitored over seven consecutive days using a waist-worn accelerometer worn 24 h a day. Only sleep duration was found to significantly differ between moon phases (~5 min/night shorter during full moon compared to new moon). Differences in MVPA, LPA, and SED between moon phases were negligible and non-significant (< 2 min/day difference). There was no difference in the associations between study sites. In conclusion, sleep duration was 1% shorter at full moon compared to new moon, while activity behaviors were not significantly associated with the lunar cycle in this global sample of children. Whether this seemingly minimal difference is clinically meaningful is questionable.",

keywords = "Children, Lunar cycle, Moon, Physical activity, Sedentary behavior, Sleep",

author = "Chaput, {Jean Philippe} and Madyson Weippert and LeBlanc, {Allana G.W.} and Hjorth, {Mads Fiil} and Michaelsen, {Kim Fleischer} and Katzmarzyk, {Peter T.} and Tremblay, {Mark S.} and Barreira, {Tiago V.} and Broyles, {Stephanie T.} and Mikael Fogelholm and Gang Hu and Rebecca Kuriyan and Kurpad, {Anura Vishwanath} and Lambert, {Estelle Victoria} and Maher, {Carol Ann} and Maia, {Jos{\'e} Ant{\'o}nio} and Matsudo, {Victor Keihan} and Tim Olds and Onywera, {Vincent Ochieng} and Olga Sarmiento and Martyn Standage and {Tudor- Locke}, {Catrine E.} and Pei Zhao and Sj{\"o}din, {Anders M.} and {ISCOLE Research Group} and Church, {Timothy S.} and Lambert, {Denise G.} and Butitta, {Ben P.} and Champagne, {Catherine M.} and Cocreham, {Shannon H.} and Dentro, {Kara N.} and Katy Drazba and {Deirdre M. Harrington}, Deirdre and Johnson, {William D.} and Dione Milauskas and Mire, {Emily F.} and Allison Tohme and Rodarte, {Ruben Q.} and John Luopa and Neiberg, {Rebecca H.} and Scott Rushing and Lewis, {Lucy Kate} and Katia Ferrar and Effie Georgiadis and Stanley, {Rebecca Megan} and Matsudo, {Sandra Mahecha} and Ara{\'u}jo, {Tim{\'o}teo Leandro} and {De Oliveira}, {Lu{\'i}s Carlos} and Leandro Rezende and Luis Fabiano and Diogo Bezerra and Ferrari, {Gerson Luis} and Priscilla B{\'e}langer and Borghese, {Michael Marc} and Charles Boyer and Francis, {Claire E.} and Genevi{\`e}ve Leduc and Chengming Diao and Wei Li and Weiqin Li and Liu, {Enquing qing} and Gongshu Liu and Hongyan Liu and Jian Ma and Yijuan Qiao and Huiguang Tian and Yue Wang and Tao Zhang and Fuxia Zhang and Julio Acosta and Yalta Alvira and D{\'i}az, {Mar{\'i}a Paula} and Rocio G{\'a}mez and Garcia, {Maria Paula} and G{\'o}mez, {Luis Guillermo} and Gonz{\'a}lez, {Lisseth Heras} and Gonz{\'a}lez, {Silvia A.} and Carlos Grijalba and Leidys Guti{\'e}rrez and David Leal and Nicol{\'a}s Lemus and Etelvina Mahecha and Mahecha, {Maria Paula} and Rosalba Mahecha and {Ram{\'i}rez Varela}, Andrea and Paola R{\'i}os and Andres Suarez and Triana, {Camilo A.} and Elli Hovi and Jemina Kivel{\"a} and R{\"a}s{\"a}nen, {Sari M.} and Sanna Roito and Taru Saloheimo and Leena Valta and Lokesh, {Deepa P.} and D'Almeida, {Michelle Stephanie} and {Annie Mattilda}, R. and {Lygia Correa}, R. and D. Vijay and Wachira, {Lucy Joy} and Muthuri, {Stella Kagwiria} and Borges, {Alessandra Silva} and {S{\'a} Cachada}, {Sofia Oliveira} and {De Chaves}, {Raquel Nichele} and Gomes, {Thayse Natacha} and Pereira, {Sara Isabel} and {E Santos}, {Daniel Monteiro} and {Dos Santos}, {Fernanda Karina} and {Da Silva}, {Pedro Gil} and {De Souza}, {Michele Caroline} and Matthew April and Monika Uys and Nirmala Naidoo and Nandi Synyanya and Carstens, {Madelaine T.} and Cumming, {Sean P.} and Clemens Drenowatz and Emm, {Lydia G.} and Gillison, {Fiona Bridget} and Zakrzewski, {Julia Kirstey} and Ashley Braud and Donatto, {Sheletta G.} and Corbin Lemon and Ana Jackson and Ashunti Pearson and Gina Pennington and Daniel Ragus and Roubion, {Ryan C.} and Schuna, {John M.} and Derek Wiltz and Batterham, {Alan Mark} and Jacqueline Kerr and Pratt, {Michael W.} and Angelo Pietrobelli",

note = "Open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.",

year = "2016",

month = mar,

day = "24",

doi = "10.3389/fped.2016.00024",

language = "English",

volume = "4",

journal = "Frontiers in Pediatrics",

issn = "2296-2360",

publisher = "Frontiers Media S.A.",

number = "MAR",

}

Chaput, JP, Weippert, M, LeBlanc, AGW, Hjorth, MF, Michaelsen, KF, Katzmarzyk, PT, Tremblay, MS, Barreira, TV, Broyles, ST, Fogelholm, M, Hu, G, Kuriyan, R, Kurpad, AV, Lambert, EV, Maher, CA, Maia, JA, Matsudo, VK, Olds, T, Onywera, VO, Sarmiento, O, Standage, M, Tudor- Locke, CE, Zhao, P, Sjödin, AM, ISCOLE Research Group, Church, TS, Lambert, DG, Butitta, BP, Champagne, CM, Cocreham, SH, Dentro, KN, Drazba, K, Deirdre M. Harrington, D, Johnson, WD, Milauskas, D, Mire, EF, Tohme, A, Rodarte, RQ, Luopa, J, Neiberg, RH, Rushing, S, Lewis, LK, Ferrar, K, Georgiadis, E, Stanley, RM, Matsudo, SM, Araújo, TL, De Oliveira, LC, Rezende, L, Fabiano, L, Bezerra, D, Ferrari, GL, Bélanger, P, Borghese, MM, Boyer, C, Francis, CE, Leduc, G, Diao, C, Li, W, Li, W, Liu, EQ, Liu, G, Liu, H, Ma, J, Qiao, Y, Tian, H, Wang, Y, Zhang, T, Zhang, F, Acosta, J, Alvira, Y, Díaz, MP, Gámez, R, Garcia, MP, Gómez, LG, González, LH, González, SA, Grijalba, C, Gutiérrez, L, Leal, D, Lemus, N, Mahecha, E, Mahecha, MP, Mahecha, R, Ramírez Varela, A, Ríos, P, Suarez, A, Triana, CA, Hovi, E, Kivelä, J, Räsänen, SM, Roito, S, Saloheimo, T, Valta, L, Lokesh, DP, D'Almeida, MS, Annie Mattilda, R, Lygia Correa, R, Vijay, D, Wachira, LJ, Muthuri, SK, Borges, AS, Sá Cachada, SO, De Chaves, RN, Gomes, TN, Pereira, SI, E Santos, DM, Dos Santos, FK, Da Silva, PG, De Souza, MC, April, M, Uys, M, Naidoo, N, Synyanya, N, Carstens, MT, Cumming, SP, Drenowatz, C, Emm, LG, Gillison, FB, Zakrzewski, JK, Braud, A, Donatto, SG, Lemon, C, Jackson, A, Pearson, A, Pennington, G, Ragus, D, Roubion, RC, Schuna, JM, Wiltz, D, Batterham, AM, Kerr, J, Pratt, MW & Pietrobelli, A 2016, 'Are children like werewolves? Full moon and its association with sleep and activity behaviors in an international sample of children', Frontiers in Pediatrics, vol. 4, no. MAR, 24. https://doi.org/10.3389/fped.2016.00024

TY - JOUR

T1 - Are children like werewolves?

T2 - Full moon and its association with sleep and activity behaviors in an international sample of children

AU - Chaput, Jean Philippe

AU - Weippert, Madyson

AU - LeBlanc, Allana G.W.

AU - Hjorth, Mads Fiil

AU - Michaelsen, Kim Fleischer

AU - Katzmarzyk, Peter T.

AU - Tremblay, Mark S.

AU - Barreira, Tiago V.

AU - Broyles, Stephanie T.

AU - Fogelholm, Mikael

AU - Hu, Gang

AU - Kuriyan, Rebecca

AU - Kurpad, Anura Vishwanath

AU - Lambert, Estelle Victoria

AU - Maher, Carol Ann

AU - Maia, José António

AU - Matsudo, Victor Keihan

AU - Olds, Tim

AU - Onywera, Vincent Ochieng

AU - Sarmiento, Olga

AU - Standage, Martyn

AU - Tudor- Locke, Catrine E.

AU - Zhao, Pei

AU - Sjödin, Anders M.

AU - ISCOLE Research Group

AU - Church, Timothy S.

AU - Lambert, Denise G.

AU - Butitta, Ben P.

AU - Champagne, Catherine M.

AU - Cocreham, Shannon H.

AU - Dentro, Kara N.

AU - Drazba, Katy

AU - Deirdre M. Harrington, Deirdre

AU - Johnson, William D.

AU - Milauskas, Dione

AU - Mire, Emily F.

AU - Tohme, Allison

AU - Rodarte, Ruben Q.

AU - Luopa, John

AU - Neiberg, Rebecca H.

AU - Rushing, Scott

AU - Lewis, Lucy Kate

AU - Ferrar, Katia

AU - Georgiadis, Effie

AU - Stanley, Rebecca Megan

AU - Matsudo, Sandra Mahecha

AU - Araújo, Timóteo Leandro

AU - De Oliveira, Luís Carlos

AU - Rezende, Leandro

AU - Fabiano, Luis

AU - Bezerra, Diogo

AU - Ferrari, Gerson Luis

AU - Bélanger, Priscilla

AU - Borghese, Michael Marc

AU - Boyer, Charles

AU - Francis, Claire E.

AU - Leduc, Geneviève

AU - Diao, Chengming

AU - Li, Wei

AU - Li, Weiqin

AU - Liu, Enquing qing

AU - Liu, Gongshu

AU - Liu, Hongyan

AU - Ma, Jian

AU - Qiao, Yijuan

AU - Tian, Huiguang

AU - Wang, Yue

AU - Zhang, Tao

AU - Zhang, Fuxia

AU - Acosta, Julio

AU - Alvira, Yalta

AU - Díaz, María Paula

AU - Gámez, Rocio

AU - Garcia, Maria Paula

AU - Gómez, Luis Guillermo

AU - González, Lisseth Heras

AU - González, Silvia A.

AU - Grijalba, Carlos

AU - Gutiérrez, Leidys

AU - Leal, David

AU - Lemus, Nicolás

AU - Mahecha, Etelvina

AU - Mahecha, Maria Paula

AU - Mahecha, Rosalba

AU - Ramírez Varela, Andrea

AU - Ríos, Paola

AU - Suarez, Andres

AU - Triana, Camilo A.

AU - Hovi, Elli

AU - Kivelä, Jemina

AU - Räsänen, Sari M.

AU - Roito, Sanna

AU - Saloheimo, Taru

AU - Valta, Leena

AU - Lokesh, Deepa P.

AU - D'Almeida, Michelle Stephanie

AU - Annie Mattilda, R.

AU - Lygia Correa, R.

AU - Vijay, D.

AU - Wachira, Lucy Joy

AU - Muthuri, Stella Kagwiria

AU - Borges, Alessandra Silva

AU - Sá Cachada, Sofia Oliveira

AU - De Chaves, Raquel Nichele

AU - Gomes, Thayse Natacha

AU - Pereira, Sara Isabel

AU - E Santos, Daniel Monteiro

AU - Dos Santos, Fernanda Karina

AU - Da Silva, Pedro Gil

AU - De Souza, Michele Caroline

AU - April, Matthew

AU - Uys, Monika

AU - Naidoo, Nirmala

AU - Synyanya, Nandi

AU - Carstens, Madelaine T.

AU - Cumming, Sean P.

AU - Drenowatz, Clemens

AU - Emm, Lydia G.

AU - Gillison, Fiona Bridget

AU - Zakrzewski, Julia Kirstey

AU - Braud, Ashley

AU - Donatto, Sheletta G.

AU - Lemon, Corbin

AU - Jackson, Ana

AU - Pearson, Ashunti

AU - Pennington, Gina

AU - Ragus, Daniel

AU - Roubion, Ryan C.

AU - Schuna, John M.

AU - Wiltz, Derek

AU - Batterham, Alan Mark

AU - Kerr, Jacqueline

AU - Pratt, Michael W.

AU - Pietrobelli, Angelo

N1 - Open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC-BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

PY - 2016/3/24

Y1 - 2016/3/24

N2 - In order to verify if the full moon is associated with sleep and activity behaviors, we used a 12-country study providing 33,710 24-h accelerometer recordings of sleep and activity. The present observational, cross-sectional study included 5812 children ages 9-11 years from study sites that represented all inhabited continents and wide ranges of human development (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, India, Kenya, Portugal, South Africa, United Kingdom, and United States). Three moon phases were used in this analysis: full moon (±4 days; reference), half moon (±5-9 days), and new moon (±10-14 days) from nearest full moon. Nocturnal sleep duration, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and total sedentary time (SED) were monitored over seven consecutive days using a waist-worn accelerometer worn 24 h a day. Only sleep duration was found to significantly differ between moon phases (~5 min/night shorter during full moon compared to new moon). Differences in MVPA, LPA, and SED between moon phases were negligible and non-significant (< 2 min/day difference). There was no difference in the associations between study sites. In conclusion, sleep duration was 1% shorter at full moon compared to new moon, while activity behaviors were not significantly associated with the lunar cycle in this global sample of children. Whether this seemingly minimal difference is clinically meaningful is questionable.

AB - In order to verify if the full moon is associated with sleep and activity behaviors, we used a 12-country study providing 33,710 24-h accelerometer recordings of sleep and activity. The present observational, cross-sectional study included 5812 children ages 9-11 years from study sites that represented all inhabited continents and wide ranges of human development (Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Finland, India, Kenya, Portugal, South Africa, United Kingdom, and United States). Three moon phases were used in this analysis: full moon (±4 days; reference), half moon (±5-9 days), and new moon (±10-14 days) from nearest full moon. Nocturnal sleep duration, moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA), light-intensity physical activity (LPA), and total sedentary time (SED) were monitored over seven consecutive days using a waist-worn accelerometer worn 24 h a day. Only sleep duration was found to significantly differ between moon phases (~5 min/night shorter during full moon compared to new moon). Differences in MVPA, LPA, and SED between moon phases were negligible and non-significant (< 2 min/day difference). There was no difference in the associations between study sites. In conclusion, sleep duration was 1% shorter at full moon compared to new moon, while activity behaviors were not significantly associated with the lunar cycle in this global sample of children. Whether this seemingly minimal difference is clinically meaningful is questionable.

KW - Children

KW - Lunar cycle

KW - Moon

KW - Physical activity

KW - Sedentary behavior

KW - Sleep

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85019945678&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.3389/fped.2016.00024

DO - 10.3389/fped.2016.00024

M3 - Article

C2 - 27047907

VL - 4

JO - Frontiers in Pediatrics

JF - Frontiers in Pediatrics

SN - 2296-2360

IS - MAR

M1 - 24

ER -