Sleep is a fundamental requirement for homeostasis and is essential for maintaining healthy metabolic and cognitive processes. Adults frequently have sleep disturbances, which can be caused by a number of environmental, behavioral, and lifestyle-related risk factors.
According to a study examining the incidence of sleep disturbance in adults, 60% of American adults said they experience some sort of sleep disturbance every day, such as excessive sleeping, erratic sleep-wake cycles, and restlessness.
An interruption in sleep has negative short- and long-term repercussions. Recent research has shown that these disruptions may result in sustained activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and sympathetic nervous system.ADH, a hormone that increases the production of cortisol, and cortisol, both of which are routinely secreted during times of stress, are released as a result of the activation of the sympathetic nervous system and HPA axis. These hormones are secreted more as a result of prolonged activation brought on by sleep disruption, which has both short- and long-term effects linked to chronic stress.
In addition to disrupting the circadian rhythm, sleep disturbances also affect it. Our sleep-wake cycle is regulated by the circadian rhythm, which is influenced by behavioral and physiological cycles. In addition to controlling our heart rate and body temperature, the circadian rhythm also controls metabolic activity by signaling when to move about and eat.These processes are all regulated by neurons of the hypothalamus. In sleep disturbance, these neurons are damaged and/or lost meaning that these processes are no longer regulated. The circadian rhythm therefore can no longer regulate food consumption, physical activity, and the sleep-wake cycle. This results in both short- and long-term consequences.
Short-term effects of sleep disturbance consist of the primary outcome, fatigue, and secondary outcomes: daytime sleepiness and pre-sleep arousal. Pre-sleep arousal exists in two forms, cognitive (e.g., intrusive thoughts) and somatic arousal (e.g., headaches). Long-term effects of sleep disturbance are more severe, such as obesity, cardiovascular disease, anxiety, and depression.
Current pharmacological treatments for sleep disturbance are intensive, are not widely tolerable, and often are paired with side effects. Treatments for highly severe sleep disturbance (e.g., insomnia) usually involve cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). CBT is also intensive, poorly tolerated and is costly, and therefore is not widely accessible.
