Relationship between hedonic hunger and subjectively assessed sleep quality and perceived stress among university students: A cross-sectional study

This study examined the relationship between hedonic hunger (HH), sleep quality, and stress levels among university students in the United Arab Emirates and the Kingdom of Bahrain. We used a cross-sectional design with participants (N = 565) recruited via convenience sampling. Data were collected with a self-administered, standardized, and validated online questionnaire. HH was assessed with the Palatable Eating Motives Scale (PEMS) and Power of Food Scale (PFS), sleep quality and sleep components were assessed with the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), stress was evaluated with the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and physical activity was examined with the International Physical Activity Questionnaire. Descriptive and analytical statistics were used to assess the relationship between HH and sleep quality and perceived stress. There were positive associations between total PSQI scores and total PEMS (β = 0.14, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.06–0.25, P = 0.001) and PFS (β = 0.21, 95% CI: 0.45–1.04, P