Sleep is largely an underrated aspect of maintaining proper health. Sleep lowers stress, reduces inflammation in the body, improves memory and focus, supports digestion and can even result in healthy weight loss. Sleep deprivation studies have demonstrated significantly increased risks of cardiovascular diseases, including coronary artery disease, hypertension, and arrhythmias. Short sleep duration over a long period of time has increased the risks of diabetes and obesity.
In 2019, and many years before this, a study surfaced looking at the effects of sleep deprivation and the development of Alzheimer’s Disease. Disruptions in circadian rhythm impair the body’s ability to clear tau protein and B-amyloid. The accumulation of these two proteins in the brain has been linked to the development of memory loss and cognitive declines associated with Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia.
For many people, a change in sleep routine is a necessary part of maintaining their livelihood. Nurses, hospital staff, security guards and other shift workers are faced with an inconsistent work-sleep schedule. People who travel across time zones frequently are also at risk of circadian rhythm disruption.
These individuals have been the focus of many research articles around the long-term effects of sleep, mood and metabolism. What has been found, is that short sleep duration elicits a physiological stress response in the form of inflammatory mediator production overnight. This physiological stress disrupts the healthy functioning of the intestinal gut microbiome. Unhealthy bacteria overgrow and create an inflammatory state, which alters metabolism. This means that shift workers are at a higher risk of developing obesity and Type 2 Diabetes.