16. Relationship among Sleep, Food Security Status, Financial Factors During the Early COVID-19 Experience

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Background Many factors affect college students’ health and wellness, including sleep habits, nutrition and financial stress. The COVID-19 experience can be considered an unprecedented experience influencing these factors. Purpose The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship among length of sleep, food security status, financial factors and risk of negative health outcomes during the early COVID-19 experience. Method Network sampling was used to conduct a cross-sectional online survey of college students as part of a research course experience. A subset of items related to food security status, sleep changes, family financial support and employment were analyzed for this study. Result Of the 282 respondents, 19.4% reported decreased sleep time, 40.3% reported increased sleep. Prior to the pandemic, 24.5% reported getting at least 8 hours of sleep, this decreased to 17% during May 2020. Thirty-four percent met the criteria for being food insecure as measured by the six-item USFSSM, which is consistent with current literature. Independent sample t-tests showed no statistical differences in change in sleep hours when comparing family financial support to no support, eligibility for stimulus check or higher risk for negative outcomes with COVID-19. No clear relationship was found with food security status. When comparing sleep time, those lacking family financial support, and those with higher health risks, averaged less than six hours of sleep compared to almost seven hours for others. Conclusions Additional research further characterizing changes in college students’ financial needs, food security status, and wellness indicators is needed to determine effective intervention strategies.