Replenishing hours of sleep may help reduce your risk of mental illness
A new study based on data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey found that people who get more sleep on weekends have significantly better health outcomes. are less likely to show symptoms of depression. This association was especially pronounced among men, people under 65 years of age, and those who sleep fewer hours on weekdays.
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Depression is the most common mental disorder worldwide and a leading cause of disability worldwide. In the United States, statistics show that approximately 18.5% of people have experienced symptoms of depression in recent weeks.
The main symptoms of depression are constant feelings of sadness and a lack of interest or pleasure in activities that were once enjoyable. This condition can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems that impair a person's ability to function both at work and at home. Symptoms may include changes in sleep, appetite, energy levels, concentration, activities of daily living, or self-esteem. Depression is often accompanied by feelings of hopelessness, recurring thoughts of death or suicide, or physical symptoms that cannot be explained by other illnesses.
The new study's author, Zhicheng Luo, and his colleagues wanted to examine the link between long weekend sleep and depressive symptoms. They noted that sleep loss is becoming increasingly common and unavoidable in modern society, especially on weekdays. To combat this problem, people often sleep longer on weekends to make up for sleep deficits accumulated during the work week. This behavior is common among people who do not get enough sleep on weekdays due to work, school or other commitments.
The authors analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey conducted in 2017 and 2020. This study is part of a program aimed at assessing the health and nutritional status of adults and children in the United States and conducted by the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The analysis included data from 7,719 participants who completed surveys about depressive symptoms and sleep disturbances. Based on the results, the study authors derived data on weekend sleep by comparing the time participants fell asleep and woke up on weekdays and weekends.
The analysis showed that about 46% of respondents slept longer on weekends and weekends. practiced daytime naps. These people tended to have shorter sleep times on weekdays compared to participants who did not nap.
Overall, those who slept longer on weekends tended to have lower levels of depressive symptoms. A closer look at the data showed that participants who slept one to two hours more on weekends had fewer depressive symptoms compared to those who did not sleep on weekends. They were about 38-46% less likely to show symptoms of depression. This reduction in depressive symptoms did not apply to people who reported getting three or more hours of sleep.
Further analysis found that the association between long weekend sleep and depressive symptoms was mainly observed in people who slept 6 hours or less on weekdays. This association was also more pronounced in men and adults under 65 years of age.
«In summary, weekend restorative sleep duration (WCS) of 0-2 hours was negatively associated with depressive symptoms or score PHQ-9 (depression assessment). Further analysis showed that the nonlinear relationship was an L-shape, or a pattern of association at which there is a threshold at which the relationship disappears, in this case the threshold was 3 hours of sleep to recuperate,” — the authors of the study concluded.
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