Are you sleeping badly? Quit smoking!
Smokers are four times more likely than non-smokers to feel restless after a night's sleep. In addition, the duration of deep or slow sleep in smokers is less, and shallow or fast sleep is longer than in non–smokers. At the same time, the most pronounced differences are observed in the early stages of sleep.
Experts suggest that the stimulating effect of nicotine leads to the fact that smokers regularly have difficulty falling asleep, and the withdrawal syndrome developing during sleep worsens its quality.
Johns Hopkins University scientists working under the guidance of Dr. Naresh M. Punjabi, using the method of polysomnography, compared the sleep structure of 40 smokers and 40 non-smokers. Unlike earlier works, the authors of which used subjective parameters to influence smoking on sleep, polysomnography allows us to obtain objective indicators and quantitative characteristics of sleep.
In addition, in order to exclude factors potentially affecting the structure of sleep, the authors (for the first time in such studies) conducted a strict selection of practically healthy participants in both the control group and the experimental group.
Additional credibility of the results of the work was provided by the fact that the structure of sleep was analyzed not only using the traditional method of visual processing of the electroencephalogram, but also using spectral analysis based on mathematical processing of the frequencies of the electroencephalogram of sleep.
Visual assessment of the phase structure of sleep revealed no differences between smokers and non-smokers. However, spectral analysis has demonstrated that the structure of smokers' sleep is characterized by a shorter relative duration of deep sleep and a longer duration of surface sleep. When asked about the quality of sleep, 22.5% of smokers noted that they did not feel rested after sleep, while for non-smokers this figure was only 5%. The results of spectral analysis also indicate that the most pronounced differences in the structure of sleep are observed during falling asleep, which confirms the assumption that the effects of nicotine are most pronounced at the initial stages of sleep.
Many smokers cannot give up a bad habit due to sleep disorders associated with nicotine withdrawal syndrome. Understanding the time dependence of the effect of nicotine on sleep quality will allow doctors to optimize substitution therapy schemes aimed at minimizing the manifestations of withdrawal syndrome, especially during sleep. Smokers also consume more caffeine than non-smokers. However, the researchers did not find a relationship between the use of caffeine and the results of spectral analysis of the electroencephalogram, as well as a lack of adequate sleep.
Portal "Eternal youth" www.vechnayamolodost.ru based on the materials of ScienceDaily.
11.02.2008