Sleep researchers Are women more dependent on sleep than men?

Regular sleep routine more important for women than for men
The sleep rhythm has a lasting effect on our physical and mental health. Now scientists from the Surrey Sleep Research Center at the University of Surrey and colleagues have found other universities that postponed sleep-wake cycles in women have a significantly more detrimental effect on cognitive functioning than men. For example, according to the researchers, women are more susceptible to impairments due to shift work. The researchers have published the results of their study in the journal "PNAS".

Most people are well aware of the impairments in mental performance in the event of fatigue or lack of sleep. Shifts in the sleep-wake cycle (circadian rhythm) show a similar effect that has been widely studied in previous studies. The British scientists from the University of Surrey, the University of Cambridge and the University of Hull have now analyzed, together with colleagues from Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore, which gender-specific differences occur in a shift in the circadian rhythm. It became clear that women are much more dependent on a balanced sleep-wake cycle than men to avoid cognitive impairment.

For women, shifts in the sleep-wake cycle are much more onerous than for men. (Image: pathdoc / fotolia.com)

Cognitive performance impaired
In their study, the researchers analyzed the effect of shifting their circadian rhythm on the basis of 16 male and 18 female volunteers. The subjects were examined in an environment without natural light sources, where the sleep-wake cycle was shifted by controlled light-dark cycles. During the waking period, participants had to complete a wide range of tests every three hours, self-assess their fatigue, and rate their mood or mood. In addition, the electrical activity in her brain was monitored during sleep phases. In particular, the objective tests to measure cognitive performance showed, according to the University of Surrey, significant change due to the shift in the circadian rhythm.

Night shifts are particularly disturbing for women
According to the researchers, effects of delayed sleep-wake cycles were detectable in both men and women. "However, the impact on performance was significantly greater in women than in men, so women were more cognitively affected in the early hours of the morning, which coincides with the end of a night shift in the real world," the University of Surrey reports. According to this, night shifts are significantly more disturbing for women than for men. The increased impairments of cognitive performance observed here should urgently be taken into account in relevant occupational groups.

For the first time ever, the current research has shown that changes in the internal clock affect the performance of men and women differently, reports Dr. med. Nayantara Santhi from the University of Surrey. Professor Derk-Jan Dijk adds that the overall results show "how important it is to capture both men and women in research and to consider a wide range of subjective and objective indicators of brain function." (Fp)