Kuwaiti researchers at the Dasman Diabetes Institute (DDI) have discovered that just one night of complete sleeplessness or poor sleep can devastate the immune system and worsen inflammatory processes in the body. The researchers believe that disrupted sleep is also linked to a range of chronic conditions, such as obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. That connection runs both ways: those health issues can also make sleep worse. Until now, the mechanisms behind these correlations have not been thoroughly studied, according to IFLScience.
Now, the authors of the new study have turned their attention to monocytes—crucial immune system cells—and how sleep quality affects them.
What Did the Researchers Discover?
To explore the relationship between sleep deprivation and changes in monocytes, as well as the link between those changes and inflammatory processes, the team enrolled 237 healthy volunteers with varying body mass indexes (BMIs) in the first phase of the study. The participants ranged in age from 25 to 39 years.
Over the course of seven days, the scientists collected blood samples to determine monocyte profiles and inflammation markers. Simultaneously, they monitored the volunteers’ diets, physical activity, and sleep patterns.
The researchers found that individuals with obesity had significantly elevated levels of nonclassical monocytes, a cell type involved in the immune response. This increase correlated with a substantial decline in sleep quality and a rise in chronic inflammation.
But the most striking finding was that sleep disturbances increased inflammation regardless of a person’s BMI.
In the next phase of sleep-deprivation experiments, five healthy participants of normal weight stayed awake for 24 hours. The researchers collected blood samples throughout the sleepless period. The results surprised the team: the monocyte counts and inflammation marker levels in the volunteers with normal BMI were comparable to those in individuals with obesity.
“This study highlights the importance of sleep quality in regulating immune responses,” the authors wrote. “Improving sleep quality could reduce inflammation and enhance treatment outcomes.”
Dr. Fatema Al-Rashid, who led the research, said, “Prolonged time in front of screens and shifting societal norms are disrupting regular sleep patterns. This has profound implications for immune health and overall well-being.”
The team hopes that future research into the relationship between sleep deprivation and immune changes, and the exploration of medical interventions that can prevent the harmful effects of insufficient sleep, will lead to new strategies for improving nighttime rest.
Ultimately, this could help combat obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease, according to Dr. Al-Rashid.
The findings of the study were published in The Journal of Immunology.
