An official website of the United States government
Epidemiology and Genomics Research Program

ASA24® Sleep Module

ASA24

On this page...

Description of the ASA24 Sleep Module

The ASA24 Sleep module is a self-report tool to capture information on respondents’ sleep health. The module became available starting with ASA24-2020. Researchers have the option to turn on the module during the creation of new ASA24 studies to capture information on sleep timing, duration, and quality from respondents after they complete the diet assessment. This will allow researchers to examine the associations between sleep and dietary intake, timing of eating, and other variables in the context of the 24-hour day.

Development of the Sleep Module

NCI’s goal when developing the Sleep module was to capture measures of self-reported sleep health. NCI researchers with diet and sleep expertise addressed the following during the development of the Sleep module:

  • the optimal order of the ASA24 modules and the period of sleep data collection in relation to dietary data collection;
  • the potential respondent target population(s) the tool would be relevant for;
  • the aspects of sleep health most relevant and feasible to capture; and
  • the implementation and refinement of the tool as an electronic data capture module.

For more information about the development of the Sleep module, please see the following:

Shams-White MM, O’Connor LE, O’Connor SG, Herrick KA. Development of the Sleep Module for the Automated Self-Administered 24-Hour (ASA24) Dietary Assessment Tool: New Research Opportunities. JAND. 2022 Nov; 122(11):2017-2022.

Shams-White MM, From “Diet and Sleep: New Research Opportunities,” interview by Snetselaar L, Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Editor’s Podcast, October 19, 2022, https://podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/diet-and-sleep-new-research-opportunities/id1302429327?i=1000583249387External Web Site Policy

Sleep Module Content

Respondents are prompted to answer 10 unique questions about sleep timing, duration, and quality after they complete the diet assessment. The questions asked during the Sleep module can be found in Appendix D of the ASA24-2020 Researcher Instructions.

Depending on whether a researcher uses a dietary recall or record, they can capture different sleep periods and thus investigate different research questions.

  • When used with a recall, the Sleep module includes two questions on wake time and sleep quality for the sleep period immediately preceding the first reported eating occasion, then primarily focuses on the sleep period after the last eating occasion. This allows researchers to assess morning fasting or how dietary intake may influence the following night of sleep.
  • When used with a record, the Sleep module focuses on the sleep period prior to the first eating occasion. A single-day food record with the Sleep module allows researchers to assess how the previous night of sleep may influence subsequent dietary intake. The use of consecutive-day food records with the Sleep module allows researchers to also assess how dietary intake may influence the following night of sleep.
The figures depict the sequence of activities captured when respondents complete a dietary record or a dietary recall with the Sleep module – i.e., 1) what sleep period is captured and 2) the sequence of sleep questions in relation to dietary intake. In the recall graphic: Because recalls collect dietary information from the previous day, Monday is the dietary intake date and Tuesday is the reporting date. On Tuesday, the participant recalls and reports information on time of waking and sleep quality on Monday (sleep answers 1-2) before dietary intake, diet throughout the day, and on sleep after dietary intake from Monday evening (sleep answers 3-7) through Tuesday morning (sleep answers 8-12). Note that the participant could have eaten after getting in bed or sleep onset. In the record graphic: Because records collect dietary data in real time, Tuesday is both the dietary intake date and reporting date. On Tuesday, the participant reports information on the sleep period from Monday evening (sleep answers 3-7) through Tuesday morning (sleep answers 8-12) before dietary intake and diet throughout the day on Tuesday. Note that participant could have eaten before getting out of bed.

Sequence of activities captured in the sleep module: recall vs. record

More information about how the Sleep module fits within ASA24 is available on the ASA24 Respondent Website Methodology web page.

Analysis Files

Codebooks and sample SAS code are provided below to accompany the ASA24 Sleep module used in both dietary recalls and records. These calculated variables and flags were created to help guide researchers using the Sleep module.

Questions

For questions about the ASA24 Sleep module, please contact the Risk Factor Assessment Branch at RFAB@mail.nih.gov.

ASA24 is a registered trademark of HHS.

Last Updated: 22 Jun, 2023