Background Obesity, diabetes, and hypertension, as three of the most prevalent chronic diseases, remain a daunting health challenge. However, to our knowledge, no study has made a thorough examination of the association between the three chronic diseases and daytime napping, a widely accepted behavior in many countries. This is especially necessary among Tibetan populations, whose lifestyles and health outcomes may be unique, yet patterns of chronic diseases and napping are under-examined. Thus, we sought to explore the aforementioned association in the Tibetan population of China. Methods A total of 2902 participants aged 45–79 in 2019 were included. Multivariate logistic regressions were conducted in 2020. The sex disparity was examined through interaction and stratified analyses. Results Hypertension (40.7%) was more prevalent than obesity (20.2%) and diabetes (21.6%). Comparing to non-nappers, those who napped were more likely to have any conditions (OR = 1.30, 95% CI = 1.04–1.62 for 1–59 min/day group and OR = 1.40, 95% CI = 1.10–1.80 for ≥60 min/day group). Participants who had 1–59 min/day of napping were more likely to develop obesity (OR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.07–1.75), and ≥ 60 min/day of napping was associated with diabetes (OR = 1.33, 95% CI = 1.01–1.74). The interactions between napping and sex were not statistically significant in the models. Conclusions The study revealed napping was unfavorably associated with obesity, diabetes, and any conditions in Tibetan people living on the Tibetan Plateau. Future interventions regarding the three chronic diseases may pay more attention to napping. Trial registration Not applicable.

Objective Sleep plays an important role in the health and well-being of middle aged and elderly people, and social capital may be one of the important factors for sleep disorders. This study aimed to understand the relationship between social capital and sleep disorders in a unique region of China –Tibet that generally has the disadvantaged economic status compared to other parts of China. Methods The study was based on Tibetan data from The China Multi-Ethnic Cohort (CMEC) and was conducted from May 2018 to September 2019. A total of 3194 Tibetans aged > 50 were selected from the community population by multi-stage stratified cluster sampling. Social capital was measured using two validated health-related social capital scales, family/community and society.. Sleep disorders were measured as the presence of disorders of initiating and maintaining sleep, early morning awakening, or daytime dysfunction. Logistic regression models were applied to examine the association between social capital and sleep disorders. Results 39.9% (1271/3194) of the participants had sleep disorders. In addition, after controlling for all potential variables, family social capital was significantly negatively associated with sleep disorders (OR = 0.95, P < 0.05), while community and society social capital was not associated with sleep disorders. Then, when we did all the sex-stratified analyses, the significant association between social capital and sleep disorders was found only in women (OR = 0.94, P < 0.05), while no association was found in males; neither males nor females showed any association with community and society social capital. Conclusion Our study would help to better understand the extent of health inequality in China, and guide future interventions, strategies and policies to promote sleep quality in low-income areas, taking into account both the role of Tibetan specific cultural traditions, lifestyles and religious beliefs in social capital and the gender differences in social capital.