Study Shows Interesting Link Between Sleep and Depression

(Newswire.net — August 20, 2021) Orlando, FL — Researchers have long been studying sleep and its impacts on health, physically and mentally. A study has shown that it is associated with a mental health issue called depression.

This research was published in the JAMA Psychiatry journal.

It involved 840,000 individuals and was carried out by the researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard.

It has been found that waking up even just one hour earlier could lessen a person’s odds of major depression by 23 percent. 

More particularly, this sweeping new genetic study has presented some of the strongest evidence yet that chronotype has an influence on the odds of depression. It is important to realize that chronotype is one’s propensity to sleep at a certain time.

“We have known for some time that there is a relationship between sleep timing and mood, but a question we often hear from clinicians is: How much earlier do we need to shift people to see a benefit?” said senior author Celine Vette.

Vette is an assistant professor of integrative physiology at CU Boulder. 

“We found that even one-hour earlier sleep timing is associated with a significantly lower risk of depression,” she added.

Observational studies in the past have demonstrated that night owls have a doubled risk of depression as early risers, regardless of how long they sleep. However, it has not been known yet why. 

This research was spearheaded by Iyas Daghlas, M.D., A Harvard Medical School graduate, who turned to data from the DNA testing company 23 and Me and the biomedical database UK Biobank. 

The investigators used the “Mendelian randomization,” which is a method leveraging genetic associations to help decipher cause and effect.

“Our genetics are set at birth so some of the biases that affect other kinds of epidemiological research tend not to affect genetic studies,” said Daghlas.

Sleep issues and depression are two separate health problems that scientists are investigating. There have been many studies conducted to look into the effects of some all-natural remedies in fighting sleep troubles and mental health issues.

There are foods, especially those containing B vitamins, that are found to be particularly helpful. B vitamins have long been studied due to their positive effects on sleep as well as on the brain. There are even some B vitamins found to combat anxiety, depression, and stress.

Today, they are obtained widely through the use of formulas like Divine Bounty B Vitamin Complex. It contains Choline, Pantothenic acid, Biotin, Vitamin B12, Folic Acid, Niacin, Riboflavin, Thiamin, and vitamin B6. (https://amazon.com/dp/B07414752B)