Short Oral Presentation Nutrition Society of Australia 50th Annual Scientific Meeting 2026

Joint effects of dietary patterns, sleep duration and regularity on colorectal cancer risk (146764)

Zegeye Abebe 1 , Muktar Ahmed 1 , Molla Wassie 1 , Erin Symonds 1 , Savio George Barreto 1 , Amy Reynolds 1 , Yohannes Adama Melaku 1
  1. Flinders university, Adelaide, SA, Australia

Colorectal cancer (CRC) is a major global health burden1-3, and increasing evidence suggests that modifiable lifestyle factors, including diet and sleep, may play an important role in its development4. Diet and sleep are biologically interconnected and may influence common pathways involved in metabolic regulation, inflammation, circadian rhythms, and cancer development 5,6. However, most cohort studies have examined dietary and sleep-related factors independently, with limited attention to their combined effects. Furthermore, previous studies have often relied on self-reported sleep measures and have given limited consideration to sleep regularity. Therefore, this study investigated the independent and combined associations of dietary patterns, objectively measured sleep duration, and sleep regularity with CRC risk in middle-aged and older adults. A prospective cohort study was conducted using data from the UK Biobank. The study included 26,175 adults with valid repeated dietary assessments and 7-day wrist accelerometer data who were free of cancer at baseline. Dietary intake was assessed using repeated Oxford WebQ 24-hour dietary recalls, and two dietary patterns were identified using reduced-rank regression: a high-energy, high-fibre pattern (DP1) and a high-energy, low-fibre pattern (DP2). Dietary pattern scores were categorised into tertiles. Sleep duration was derived from wrist accelerometry and categorised as short (<7 hours), recommended (7–9 hours), or long (>9 hours), while sleep regularity was categorised as high, medium, or low. Incident CRC was identified through cancer-registry linkage, and Cox proportional hazards models were used to estimate independent and combined associations. Participants had a median age of 56 years (IQR 49–62), and 58% were female. Moderate adherence to DP1 was associated with a lower risk of CRC (HR 0.84, 95% CI 0.62–1.14), whereas higher adherence to DP2 was associated with a higher risk (HR 1.28, 95% CI 0.93–1.76). Short sleep duration was associated with higher CRC risk (HR 1.73, 95% CI 1.07–2.80), while long sleep duration (HR 1.21, 95% CI 0.94–1.55) and low sleep regularity (HR 1.19, 95% CI 0.88–1.60) showed weaker positive associations. Greater risks were observed when adverse dietary and sleep characteristics occurred together. Compared with the reference group, participants in the highest dietary tertile with short sleep duration had higher CRC risk for both DP1 (HR 2.48, 95% CI 1.14–5.37) and DP2 (HR 2.67, 95% CI 1.32–5.38). Higher DP1 combined with low sleep regularity was also associated with increased CRC risk (HR 2.13, 95% CI 1.27–3.58). These findings suggest that dietary patterns and objectively measured sleep characteristics may jointly contribute to CRC risk. Integrating sleep duration and regularity into dietary and lifestyle assessment may provide a more comprehensive approach to CRC prevention and could support the development of practical, multifactorial lifestyle interventions in primary care and other preventive health settings.

Keywords: Colorectal cancer; dietary pattern; sleep duration; sleep regularity

 

 

  1. 1 Rawla P, Sunkara T, Barsouk A (2019) Gastroenterology Rev 14, 89–103. 2 Siegel RL, Wagle NS, Cercek A et al. ( 2023) CA Cancer J Clin 73, 233-254. 3 Bray, F. et al. (2022) CA Cancer J Clin 74, 229-263. 4 Clinton SK, Giovannucci EL, Hursting SD (2020) J Nutr 150, 663-671. 5 Potter GD, Skene DJ, Arendt J et al. (2016) Endocr Rev 37, 584-608. 6 Malcomson FC (2018) Nutr Bull, 43: 400-415.