Walking through campus, an observer
might pick up mention of how little sleep everyone is getting (especially
during finals period). Although it can be difficult to maintain healthy
sleeping habits during periods of stress, a recent study exploring the
connection between insomnia symptoms and cardio-cerebral events reiterates the
important connection between sleep and overall health.
In the study, individuals with insomnia symptoms
such as difficulty initiating sleep, difficulty maintaining sleep, early-morning
awakening, and non-restorative sleep were observed from fifteen studies in
thirteen different countries (n=160,087 participants). During follow up
periods, positive associations were observed between all of the symptoms
(except early-morning awakening) and the risk of cardio-cerebral events.
Cardio-cerebral events include disorders such as heart disease and stroke. The
increased cardiovascular and stroke risk was 27% for difficulty initiating
sleep, 11% for difficulty maintaining sleep, and 18% for non-restorative sleep.
Additionally, women fared more poorly than their male counterparts who had the
same symptoms. In conjunction with the existence of literature that indicates
that women are more prone to having insomnia, this information implies that
women, in particular, should pay attention to their sleep quality.
The exact mechanism for these
negative impacts isn’t yet fully elucidated. However, a 2004 study points to the
presence of a bulk flow mechanism in the brain that is used for neural
maintenance activities (clearance of beta-amyloid deposits and cell migration).
It could be possible that the insufficient sleep experienced by insomniacs
impairs this process and, along with other systemic consequences of sleep deprivation,
contributes to negative bodily impacts.
References:
Abbott, N. J. (2004). Evidence for bulk flow of brain interstitial
fluid: significance for physiology and pathology. Neurochemistry
International, 45(4), 545–552.
http://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuint.2003.11.006
He, Q., Zhang, P., Li, G., Dai, H., & Shi, J. (2017). The
association between insomnia symptoms and risk of cardio-cerebral vascular
events: A meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies. European Journal of
Preventive Cardiology, 24(10), 1071–1082. http://doi.org/10.1177/2047487317702043
Hello Halimah,
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting this interesting information. This is unwelcome news for me, a chronic “bad sleeper.” I knew of the psychological effects of sleep deprivation and some of the physiological effects, but I did not know about the link between insomnia and cardiovascular disease. I did a little research and found that chronic insomnia was only relatively recently linked firmly with significant medical morbidity, as in cardiovascular disease. Several studies show that a difficulty initiating or maintaining sleep were associated with an increased risk of hypertension, acute myocardial infarction, and incident type 2 diabetes. Compared to normal sleepers who slept ≥ 6h per night, the highest odds of hypertension or diabetes was in patients with insomnia who slept ≤5h and the second highest in patients with insomnia who slept 5-6 h, while patients with insomnia who slept ≥ 6h were not at significantly increased risk of hypertension or diabetes. Bottom line: I need to figure out how to get more sleep!
References:
Fernandez-Mendoza, J., & Vgontzas, A. N. (2013). Insomnia and Its Impact on Physical and Mental Health. Current Psychiatry Reports, 15(12), 418. http://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-013-0418-8