Overweight individuals who ignore their body’s signals to sleep at night may experience negative health consequences, with significant differences in men and women.
Circadian rhythm disruption can lead to higher levels of abdominal fat, elevated triglycerides in the blood, and an increased risk of metabolic syndrome in men. Similarly, disturbed sleep can lead to a higher overall body fat percentage, elevated glucose levels, and increased resting heart rate in women. Circadian rhythm is the 24-hour internal clock in our brain that regulates cycles of alertness and sleepiness by responding to light changes in our environment.
New research from Oregon Health & Science University was published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism reveals the importance of good sleeping habits(1✔ ✔Trusted Source
Circadian alignment, cardiometabolic disease, and sex specific differences in adults with overweight/obesity
).
Cardiometabolic diseases and obesity are emerging as significant public health concerns, according to Shafer. Research suggests that individuals who are already vulnerable due to their weight may experience significant impacts on their health as a result of disruptions in the body’s internal biological clock.
The study recruited 30 people, split evenly between men and women. All had a body mass index above 25, which put them into an overweight or obese category.
Melatonin and Sleep
Generally, healthy participants contributed a saliva sample every 30 minutes until late in the night at a sleep lab on OHSU’s Marquam Hill campus to determine the time at which their body started naturally producing the hormone melatonin. Melatonin is generally understood to begin the process of falling asleep, and its onset varies with an individual’s internal biological clock.
Participants then went home and logged their sleep habits over the following seven days.
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Researchers assessed the time difference between melatonin onset and average sleep timing for each participant, categorizing them into two groups:
- Narrow window group: short time duration between melatonin onset and sleep
- Wide window group: longer duration between melatonin onset and sleep
A wide window suggests someone who is staying awake too late for their internal body clock and is generally associated with poorer health outcomes.
Wide windows are generally more harmful because they represent a misalignment between circadian rhythms and actual sleep behavior which results in insufficient sleep, poorer sleep quality, and long-term health consequences.
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The disruption of natural circadian processes is associated with various health risks, including impaired cognitive performance, mood disorders, and chronic conditions like obesity and cardiovascular disease.
The new study confirmed a variety of potentially harmful health measures in the group that went to sleep closer to melatonin onset.
Sleep Time and Gender Specific Health Outcomes
It also found key differences between men and women.
- Men in this group had higher levels of belly fat and fatty triglycerides in the blood, and higher overall metabolic syndrome risk scores than the men who slept better.
- Women in this group had higher overall body fat percentage, glucose, and resting heart rates.
“It was somewhat surprising to see these differences present themselves in a sex-dependent manner,” said senior author Andrew McHill, Ph.D., assistant professor in the OHSU School of Nursing, the School of Medicine, and the Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences at OHSU. “It’s not one size fits all, as we sometimes think in academic medicine.”
The next phase of research will determine sex-specific differences in groups that experience more severe changes in sleep patterns, such as workers pulling overnight shifts.
“We want to figure out possible interventions that keep this vital core group of the workforce healthy,” Shafer said.
Reference:
- Circadian alignment, cardiometabolic disease, and sex specific differences in adults with overweight/obesity
– (https:doi.org/10.1210/clinem/dgae580
)
Source-Eurekalert
