Sustained sleep restriction reduces emotional and physical well-being.
BACKGROUND
Chronic insufficient sleep is a common finding in many pain-related and other medical diseases and is frequently experienced in the general population. Prolonged curtailment of nocturnal sleep has been studied for its adverse effect on cognitive functioning and subjective tiredness, but relatively little is known about its effect on mood and physical symptoms.


OBJECTIVE
In order to test whether sleep restriction to 50% of the habitual time over 12 days affects diurnal and day-to-day variation of subjective ratings of mood and physical symptoms, 108 adjectives and statements were self-rated using visual analog scales every 2h during the waking period.


METHODS
Randomized, 16-day controlled in-laboratory study.


METHODS
General Clinical Research Center (GCRC).


METHODS
Forty healthy subjects aged 21-40 years (14 females, 26 males).


METHODS
Subjects were randomized to either 4h of sleep per night (11 pm-3 am, N=22) or 8h of sleep per night (11 pm-7 am, N=18) for 12 consecutive days.


METHODS
Changes in the factor-derived variables optimism-sociability, tiredness-fatigue, anger-aggression, bodily discomfort, and items constituting bodily discomfort were compared between groups.


RESULTS
Optimism-sociability progressively declined over consecutive days of sleep restriction by 15%. Bodily discomfort showed a slight, but significant interindividual increase of 3% across days of sleep restriction due to significant increases of generalized body pain, back pain, and stomach pain. Optimism-sociability and tiredness-fatigue showed diurnal variations with a quadratic function period within each day in both conditions.


CONCLUSIONS
The data suggest that chronic insufficient sleep may contribute to the onset and amplification of pain and affect health by compromising optimistic outlook and psychosocial functioning.
Haack
Monika
M
Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, East Campus, Dana 779, 330 Brookline Ave., Boston, MA 02215, USA.
Mullington
Janet M
JM
D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015984:Causality; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D011788:Quality of Life; D018570:Risk Assessment / Q000379:methods; D012307:Risk Factors; D012892:Sleep Deprivation / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology*