Inconsistent Sleep Linked with Inflammatory Dysfunction in Women

Inconsistent sleep was found to be significantly associated with inflammatory dysfunction, particularly in women, according to study findings.

Inconsistent sleep was found to be significantly associated with inflammatory dysfunction, particularly in women, according to study findings published in Frontiers in Neurology.

Researchers note that poor sleep has been associated with higher levels of inflammatory biomarkers, in which higher average time awake, lower average time asleep, and lower sleep efficiency define poor sleep. Another factor, sleep inconsistency, has emerged as an important approach to quantifying sleep, with implications for physical and mental functioning.

Moreover, recent research suggests that sleep inconsistency, in addition to average sleep, may play an influential role in the development of these biomarkers. “Sleep inconsistency may represent an underlying collection of dysfunction in biological systems involved in sleep-wake regulation, dysfunction that may be missed by only examining average sleep,” explained the study authors.

“Biological mechanisms through which poor sleep adversely impacts health outcomes continue to be identified and include proinflammatory responses, the sympathetic nervous system, the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, and endothelial renal functioning,” they wrote

-Matthew Gavidia

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