Friday, October 19, 2018

The Effect of Sleep on Teenagers' Metabolic Health

It is argued that sleep during the teenage and high school years are most important, however recent studies from the National Sleep Department show that over "87 percent of American high school students are chronically sleep-deprived" (Gregoire). Contemporary studies and news articles show that there are effects of a disruption of the circadian rhythm on a person's health. Here we will dive deeper into understanding how this disruption specifically affects teenagers and their metabolic health by examining an article published in Pediatrics titled "Objective Sleep Characteristics and Cardiometabolic Health in Young Adolescents" by Elizabeth Feliciano. Once we do this, we will take a look at how the information from "A Peptidergic Circuit Links the Circadian Clock to Locomotor Activity" by King et. al. relates to our modern day and real-world take. 

Feliciano conducted a study on 829 teenage boys and girls and monitored the length and quality of their sleep to see if there was an effect on the quality and quantity of sleep on metabolic health factors. The study also decided to focus on five different factors that are tied to cardiovascular health. These factors included wrist circumference, blood pressure, lipoprotein cholesterol, triglycerides, and insulin resistance. In order to measure and collect this data, the staff used autographs that subjects wore on their wrists that measured the quantity of sleep along with its quality, that is how many times a subject woke up after being asleep for the first stage of their sleep patterns. Results showed that increased sleep durations were correlated with decreased metabolic risks. 



This information is valid to know because it gives assistance to the new and upcoming notion that diet and physical activity are not the only things that can affect obesity in a child. It shows that sleep and the circadian rhythms along with its disruption play a key role in impacting health. Feliciano stated that increased sleep duration along with decreased inefficiencies in sleep, that is an increase in quality, factors into decreased obesity rates. 
What King et.al. examined in their work shows something similar. They argued that a disruption in the circadian sleep patterns, whether that be quality, quantity, or both (as Feliciano's research examined), have greater implications. Through their research with Drosophila and through their examination of locomotive activity, they found that an alteration of light and day didn't affect activity of a studied group of 15-16 flies or their feeding behavior because it is found that an internal circadian rhythm is what controls this type of activity. 


This information found is now applicable to our nation's youth because, as Professor Dryer's presentation highlighted, the circadian rhythm is one that not only controls internal aspects such as activity but, in conjunction, has control over various behavioral aspects. Our circadian cycles have been perfected after billions of years of evolution and we should aim to stick with in and not aim to disturb it. Some of these disruptions can lead to health complications that include cancer, metabolic disorders (including obesity), or can factor into someone's mental health. It is important that we take these studies as indicators to promote healthy sleeping patterns amongst our youth to prepare them for a healthier tomorrow and protect them from health consequences that this deprivation can cause. 



Works Cited: 


Feliciano, Elizabeth M. Cespedes, et al. “Objective Sleep Characteristics and Cardiometabolic Health in Young Adolescents.” Pediatrics, American Academy of Pediatrics, 1 July 2018


Gregoire, Carolyn. “5 Scary Health Effects Of Sleep Deprivation During The Teen Years.” The Huffington Post, Oath Inc., 31 Jan. 2018


King, Anna N., et al. “A Peptidergic Circuit Links the Circadian Clock to Locomotor Activity.” Current Biology, vol. 27, no. 13, 2017, doi:10.1016/j.cub.2017.05.089.


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