Death from Sleep Deprivation Could be Happening in Your Gut
Death from Sleep Deprivation Could be Happening in Your Gut
by Liz Moon, NP
A study published in Cell last month suggests a causal link between sleep deprivation and premature death.
Death Due to Sleep Deprivation Linked Causally to the Gut, and is Preventable in Flies
Harvard Medical School (HMS) neuroscientists were surprised to find the gut to be specifically vulnerable to sleep deprivation. Most previous studies related to sleep loss have
focused on the nervous system alone. The researchers hypothesized if animals (research subjects)
die from sleep deprivation there must be some tissue injury in the body. What they were able to find is that in the gut of sleep deprived flies (they used flies because their sleep cycles mimic humans) and mice there was an accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). These are molecules that are chemically unstable leading to oxidative stress on tissues. The ROS accumulation was not found in other tissues including the brain, fat, muscle, and testes. Another
important finding was, if they were able to prevent the accumulation of ROS the study subjects would live a normal lifespan. They were able to do this by neutralizing ROS with supplements such as melatonin, alpha lipoic acid, and NAD (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide). However, supplementing these compounds did not make a difference in non-sleep deprived subjects.
The study left researchers with many questions that will support further research. Why the gut? How does the gut know if the brain is sleeping? What is the mechanism through which sleep deprivation kills the animal? So much to learn!
If you would like to improve your sleep and gut health call us today! We have an entire team to support your wellness goals. Contact our office at 224-407-4400 or through our website at www.compgihealth.com to schedule an appointment.