Students who listened to Beethoven during lecture -- and in dreamland -- did better on test

But scores on the material nine months later dropped to 'floor level'

April 7, 2020

Science Daily/Baylor University

College students who listened to classical music by Beethoven and Chopin during a computer-interactive lecture on microeconomics -- and heard the music played again that night -- did better on a test the next day than did peers who were in the same lecture, but instead slept that evening with white noise in the background.

Over the long haul -- when students took a similar test nine months later -- the boost did not last. Scores dropped to floor levels, with everyone failing and performance averaging less than 25% percent for both groups. However, targeted memory reactivation (TMR) may aid during deep sleep, when memories are theorized to be reactivated and moved from temporary storage in one part of the brain to more permanent storage in other parts, researchers said.

The study, supported by the National Science Foundation and conducted by Baylor's Sleep Neuroscience and Cognition Laboratory (SNAC), is published in the journal Neurobiology of Learning and Memory.

"All educators want to teach students how to integrate concepts, not just memorize details, but that's notoriously difficult to do," said Michael K. Scullin, Ph.D., director of Baylor's sleep lab and assistant professor of psychology and neuroscience. "What we found was that by experimentally priming these concepts during sleep, we increased performance on integration questions by 18% on the test the next day. What student wouldn't want a boost or two to their letter grade? The effects were particularly enhanced in participants who showed heightened frontal lobe activity in the brain during slow wave sleep, which is deep sleep."

He noted that the effects emerged when using gold standard procedures: neither participants nor experimenters knew who received a particular treatment, sleep was measured using EEG in a laboratory setting, and the learning materials matched those that would actually be used in a college classroom, in this case an undergraduate microeconomics lecture.

Poor sleep is widespread in college students, with 60 percent habitually sleeping fewer than the recommended seven hours on 50 to 65 percent of nights. While students may be more concerned about immediate test results -- and TMR may help them cram for an exam -- learning by rote (item memory) does not normally benefit grasping and retaining a concept.

For the study, researchers recruited 50 college students ages 18 to 33 for a learning task with a self-paced, computer-interactive lecture; and for two overnight polysomnography sessions, with the first night an adaptation to the lab and screening for sleep disorders, and the second done the evening of the lecture.

During the lecture, soft background selections were played from a computer: the first movement of Beethoven's "Moonlight" Piano Sonata, the first movement of Vivaldi's "Spring" Violin Concerto and Chopin's Nocturne in E-flat major, Op. 9, No. 2.

That night in Baylor's sleep lab, research personnel applied electrodes and used computers to monitor sleep patterns of both test and control groups. Once technicians observed a person was in deep sleep, they played either the classical music or the white noise -- depending on whether the individual was in the test or control group -- for about 15 minutes.

"Deep slow wave sleep won't last super long before shifting back to light sleep, so we couldn't play them endlessly," Scullin said. "If we played it during light sleep, the music probably would have awoken participants. The first slow wave cycle is the deepest and longest."

The music choice was important, researchers said.

"We ruled out jazz because it's too sporadic and would probably cause people to wake," Scullin said. "We ruled out popular music because lyrical music disrupts initial studying. You can't read words and sing lyrics -- just try it. We also ruled out ocean waves and ambient music because it's very easy to ignore. You're going to have a heck of a time forming a strong association between some learning material and a bland song or ambient noise.

"That left us with classical music, which many students already listen to while studying," he said. "The songs can be very distinctive and therefore pair well with learning material."

In the microeconomics exam the next day, the TMR of classical music more than doubled the likelihood of passing the test when compared with the control condition of white noise.

Scullin cautioned against confusing the Baylor study's findings with the so-called "Mozart Effect" -- the finding that having students listen to Mozart pieces led to better scores on intelligence tests. Subsequent tests of the "Mozart Effect" found that it either did not replicate or that boosts were strictly due to increased arousal when listening to energetic music.

"Mozart doesn't make memories," Scullin said.

Previous researchers have found that memories associated with sensory cues -- such as an odor or song -- are re-activated when the same cue is received later. When that happens during deep sleep, the corresponding memories are activated and strengthened, said co-researcher Chenlu Gao, a doctoral candidate of psychology and neuroscience at Baylor.

Early experimenters also played audio tapes during sleep to test whether individuals can learn new knowledge while sleeping. But while those experiments failed to create new memories, "our study suggests it is possible to reactivate and strengthen existing memories of lecture materials during sleep," Gao said.

"Our next step is to implement this technique in classrooms -- or in online lectures while students complete their education at home due to COVID-19 social distancing measures -- so we can help college students 're-study' their class materials during sleep."

"We think it is possible there could be long-term benefits of using TMR but that you might have to repeat the music across multiple nights," Scullin added. "After all, you wouldn't just study material a single time and then expect to remember it months later for a final exam. The best learning is repeated at spaced-out intervals -- and, of course, while maintaining good sleep habits."

*The study was supported by the National Science Foundation. Paul Fillmore, assistant professor of communication sciences and disorders in Baylor's Robbins College of Health and Human Sciences, also was a co-researcher.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200407072720.htm

Children of parents with mental illness have higher risk of injuries

April 8, 2020

Science Daily/Karolinska Institutet

Children to parents suffering from mental illness have a higher risk of injuries than other children, according to a study by researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. The risk is elevated up to 17 years of age and peaks during the first year of life. The findings highlight the need for parents with mental illness to receive extra support around child injury prevention measures as well as early treatment of mental morbidity among expecting parents.

Between 7-11 percent of all children in Sweden have at least one parent diagnosed with a mental illness, according to the researchers' estimates. Previous measures to safeguard children have focused mainly on preventing neglect and maltreatment and to a lesser degree on stopping accidents and injuries. However, according to the researchers it might be possible to reduce child injuries by helping parents with mental illness to adopt preventive safety measures in their homes and outside.

"Our results show there is a need for increased support to parents with mental illness, especially during the first year of life," says Alicia Nevriana, PhD student at the Department of Global Public Health and the study's corresponding author. "There are already recommendations for new parents to ensure their children's safety, but we think there is a need to update these recommendations also by taking into account parents' mental health."

Children in the ages 0-1 had a 30 percent higher risk of injuries if they had a parent with mental illness. The risk declined with age but remained somewhat higher (6 percent) for children in the ages 13-17. The researchers found that the risk of injuries was slightly higher for common parental mental disorders, such as depression, anxiety and stress-related illnesses, compared to more serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders. The risk was also slightly higher for maternal compared to paternal mental illness.

Also, the risk was somewhat higher for more uncommon types of injuries caused by for example interpersonal violence compared to more common injuries caused by for example falls or traffic accidents. The researchers note, however, that violence-related injuries are rare also in families with mental illness.

The study, which was done in collaboration with researchers at the University of Manchester in the U.K., followed 1.5 million children residing in Sweden and born between 1996-2011, of whom more than 330,000 had at least one parent diagnosed with a mental illness during that period or five years earlier.

The study does not explain why children of parents with mental illness have a higher risk of injuries. Some plausible explanations may be that some parents with mental illness struggle to adequately supervise their children and to childproof their homes, according to the researchers.

"Mental illness is often associated with worse socioeconomic conditions, which might lead to the family living in a less safe in- and outdoor environment or cannot afford some security measures," Nevriana says. "We cannot entirely exclude that the higher risks in our study might be partly explained by the family's socioeconomic conditions, even though we tried to control for socioeconomic factors as best as we could. We have also not studied whether certain medications for mental illness, especially those with an impact on alertness and attention, could affect the children's risk of injury, and this should be studied in future research."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200408184625.htm

Kids who blame themselves for mom's sadness are more likely to face depression and anxiety

March 11, 2020

Science Daily/Southern Methodist University

"Even if she doesn't say it, I know it's my fault that my mother gets sad."

Kids who believe comments like this -- assuming blame for their mom's sadness or depression -- are more likely to face depression and anxiety themselves, a new study led by SMU has found.

"Although mothers with higher levels of depressive symptoms face increased risk that their children will also experience symptoms of depression and anxiety, our study showed that this was not the case for all children," said SMU family psychologist and lead author Chrystyna Kouros. "Rather, it was those children who felt they were to blame for their mother's sadness or depression...that had higher levels of internalizing symptoms."

In light of the findings, Kouros said it's critical that parents and others who regularly interact with children pay close attention to the kinds of comments that kids make about their mom's symptoms and to intervene if children incorrectly think that it's their fault that their mom is depressed. Children who take on this blame can benefit from therapies and interventions that target negative thoughts, said Kouros, SMU associate professor of psychology.

Sharyl E. Wee and Chelsea N. Carson, graduate students at SMU, and Naomi Ekas, an associate professor of psychology at Texas Christian University, also contributed to the study, which was published in the Journal of Family Psychology.

The study is based on surveys taken by 129 mothers and their children, who were recruited from the Dallas-Fort Worth community through schools, flyers and online advertisements. On average, children included in the study were 13 years old.

Moms were asked to agree or disagree to 20 statements like "I could not shake off the blues" and "I lost interest in my usual activities" to assess if they had depressive symptoms, even if they had not actually been diagnosed with depression. Nearly 12 percent of the women surveyed were found to have potential clinical levels of depressive symptoms.

The moms were also asked to assess whether they felt their children had symptoms of depression and anxiety.

Kids, meanwhile, were asked to complete a total of four surveys to see if they were dealing with any anxiety or depression and whether they blamed themselves for any signs of depression in their mothers.

Kouros said there are two likely explanations for the linkage between mothers' depressive symptoms and kids' own mental health issues:

"If children blame themselves for their mothers' depressive symptoms, then they may be more likely to brood about their mother's symptoms. And we know from an extensive body of research that rumination over stressors -- especially ones that are uncontrollable -- is linked with depression and anxiety," Kouros said. "Also, if children feel personally responsible for their mothers' symptoms, they may try to 'make it better' and use ineffective coping strategies. This could lead to a sense of helplessness, failure, and low self-worth in the child, since ultimately the child was misattributing the cause of their mothers' depressive symptoms."

More studies are needed to see if depressed dads have the same effect on their children, Kouros said.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200311134913.htm

Older children's brains respond differently to rewarding vs. negative experiences late in day

This may help explain why they are more likely to engage in risky behavior at night

March 11, 2020

Science Daily/Binghamton University

Older children respond more strongly to rewarding experiences and less strongly to negative experiences later in the day, which may lead to poor decision-making at night, according to research from Binghamton University, State University of New York.

"When children transition into adolescence, they begin to chase rewards/pleasing experiences more and respond to losses/punishment less. How responsive someone is to rewards varies depending on time of day because of circadian rhythms," said Aliona Tsypes, a graduate student in psychology at Binghamton University. "So we wanted to see how time of day might affect reward responsiveness in children and how this might vary depending on their age. This is important to better understand (and prevent) teenage risk-taking, particularly because the rates of psychological problems increase dramatically during one's transition to adolescence. This is also important for us and other researchers who study reward to know, to make sure we consider the timing of our study sessions as a potentially influential factor."

Tsypes and Brandon Gibb, professor of psychology and director of the Mood Disorders Institute at Binghamton University, recruited 188 healthy children between the ages of 7 and 11 and had them complete a commonly used simple guessing task on a computer. In this task, they see two doors on the screen and guess which one has money behind it. Each time they guess correctly, they win 50 cents and each time they are incorrect, they lose 25 cents. During the task, the researchers measured children's brain activity using electroencephalography (EEG) to examine neural responses to wins and losses.

"One way to objectively assess someone's responsiveness to reward and loss is to measure their brain activity while they play a computer game during which they receive feedback about winning or losing money," said Gibb. "In our study, we were primarily interested in how these responses to gains versus losses may differ throughout the day in children."

The researchers found that older children had stronger neural responses to rewards/pleasing experiences than losses/punishments later in the day (after around 5:15 p.m.), whereas younger children showed the reverse pattern. These findings suggest that early adolescents might experience greater urges to engage in rewarding/pleasing experiences, even if such experiences are unhealthy or dangerous, later in the day.

"Heightened reward responsiveness in early adolescents later in the day may contribute to greater risk for making poor decisions in the evenings (e.g., choosing to engage in risky behaviors)," said Gibb. "This may help to explain why adolescence is a period of increased risk for developing psychopathology and substance use problems."

"If there are times during which children who approach adolescence are particularly responsive to rewards and particularly unresponsive to losses/punishment, these might be important times to particularly watch out for, to prevent dangerous behaviors," said Tsypes.

Tsypes continues to study reward-related processes, particularly as they relate to suicidal and self-harming thoughts and behaviors (STBs). She hopes to better understand the influences of circadian rhythms on reward and how this affects the risk for STBs.

"It is important to note that time-of-day effects are not strictly circadian, so future research should also examine additional relevant variables with a circadian rhythm (e.g., cortisol) to better distinguish reward-related processes from other cyclic processes within the human nervous system," said Tsypes.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200311121818.htm

Demographics linked to choice not to vaccinate children in Texas

March 10, 2020

Science Daily/University of Texas at Austin

Texans who are college-educated, live in suburban or urban areas, have higher median incomes and are ethnically white are less likely to vaccinate their children, according to analysis by researchers at The University of Texas at Austin. The findings could help public health officials identify pockets of low vaccination rates where communities within the state are at higher risk for an outbreak of vaccine-preventable diseases such as measles.

In a paper published today in the journal PLOS Medicine, professor of integrative biology Lauren Ancel Meyers, a computational epidemiologist, and her team at UT Austin compared publicly available census data with the number of conscientious vaccination exemptions from public, private and charter school systems across Texas. The state is one of 15 to allow families who cite a philosophical objection to vaccines to opt out of immunizations for their children that are otherwise required for enrolling in school. A total of 45 states and Washington, D.C., allow religious objections to immunizations.

"The study not only provides a window into local vaccination patterns throughout Texas, but also allows us to make predictions," Meyers said. "If you don't have data on the vaccination rate for a given community, you can use demographic factors to predict outbreak risks for vaccine-preventable diseases."

Researchers consider vaccination exemption rates of 3% or higher in a school or school district to be the threshold for high risk of an outbreak of vaccine-preventable illness. A growing number of schools exceed that threshold in Texas. Between the 2012-2013 school year and the 2017-2018 school year, the percentage of school districts reporting high-risk levels of exemptions doubled in public school districts across the state, rising from 3% to 6%. High-risk private schools increased from 20% to 26%, and charter schools increased from 17% to 22%.

The study examined the top 10 metropolitan areas in Texas, including rural, suburban and urban communities within each area. Suburban and higher-income urban communities were more likely to have high vaccination exemption rates than rural counties, the study found. Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston were the cities with the highest risk of vaccine opt-outs. Areas with higher percentages of young children, ethnically white people and people with a bachelor's degree were more likely to have higher vaccination exemption rates.

On the flip side, researchers found that counties with lower median income and a higher percentage of people who spoke a non-English language at home were more likely to have a lower vaccine opt-out rate.

"We wanted to identify potential pockets of hidden risk throughout Texas stemming from declining childhood vaccination rates," Meyers said.

To do this, Meyers and colleagues took a more detailed look at the data. Prior studies looked at average exemption rates within counties and concluded that most Texas counties did not cross the 3% exemption rate. By instead tracking the number of individual schools and districts above this threshold, the team identified unseen pockets of risk. Travis County, for instance, has a 2.8% conscientious exemption rate. But using her more fine-tuned model, Meyers was able to predict pockets within Travis County where the vaccination exemption rate was higher than 3%.

"This study allows us to detect potential hot spots at a finer geographic scale," she said. "The increasing numbers of exemptions are already alarming. In addition, the clustering of unvaccinated children in tight communities only amplifies the risk of an outbreak."

Similar studies have been performed in other states, such as California. Meyers' study was the first to look at Texas, which is considered a high-risk state for an outbreak of vaccine-preventable illness, at such a granular level. Meyers and her team estimate that 5% of public schools in metropolitan areas of Texas, 28% of private schools and 22% of charter schools are at risk for an outbreak.

The study did not offer any clues about why some demographic groups are opting out of vaccinating their children at such a high rate.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/03/200310141309.htm

Declining eyesight improved by looking at deep red light

June 29, 2020

Science Daily/University College London

Staring at a deep red light for three minutes a day can significantly improve declining eyesight, finds a new UCL-led study, the first of its kind in humans.

Scientists believe the discovery, published in the Journals of Gerontology, could signal the dawn of new affordable home-based eye therapies, helping the millions of people globally with naturally declining vision.

In the UK there are currently around 12 million people aged over 65: in 50 years this will increase to around 20 million and all will have some degree of visual decline because of retinal ageing.

Lead author, Professor Glen Jeffery (UCL Institute of Ophthalmology) said: "As you age your visual system declines significantly, particularly once over 40.

"Your retinal sensitivity and your colour vision are both gradually undermined, and with an ageing population, this is an increasingly important issue.

"To try to stem or reverse this decline, we sought to reboot the retina's ageing cells with short bursts of longwave light."

In humans around 40 years-old, cells in the eye's retina begin to age, and the pace of this ageing is caused, in part, when the cell's mitochondria, whose role is to produce energy (known as ATP) and boost cell function, also start to decline.

Mitochondrial density is greatest in the retina's photoreceptor cells, which have high energy demands. As a result, the retina ages faster than other organs, with a 70% ATP reduction over life, causing a significant decline in photoreceptor function as they lack the energy to perform their normal role.

Researchers built on their previous findings in mice, bumblebees and fruit flies, which all found significant improvements in the function of the retina's photoreceptors when their eyes were exposed to 670 nanometre (long wavelength) deep red light.

"Mitochondria have specific light absorbance characteristics influencing their performance: longer wavelengths spanning 650 to 1000nm are absorbed and improve mitochondrial performance to increase energy production," said Professor Jeffery.

The retina's photoreceptor population is formed of cones, which mediate colour vision and rods, which provide peripheral vision and adapt vision in low/dim light.

For the study, 24 people (12 male, 12 female), aged between 28 and 72, who had no ocular disease, were recruited. All participants' eyes were tested for the sensitivity of their rods and cones at the start of the study. Rod sensitivity was measured in dark adapted eyes (with pupils dilated) by asking participants to detect dim light signals in the dark, and cone function was tested by subjects identifying coloured letters that had very low contrast and appeared increasingly blurred, a process called colour contrast.

All participants were then given a small LED torch to take home and were asked to look into its deep red 670nm light beam for three minutes a day for two weeks. They were then re-tested for their rod and cone sensitivity

Results

Researchers found the 670nm light had no impact in younger individuals, but in those around 40 years and over, significant improvements were obtained.

Cone colour contrast sensitivity (the ability to detect colours) improved by up to 20% in some people aged around 40 and over. Improvements were more significant in the blue part of the colour spectrum that is more vulnerable in ageing.

Rod sensitivity (the ability to see in low light) also improved significantly in those aged around 40 and over, though less than colour contrast.

Professor Jeffery said: "Our study shows that it is possible to significantly improve vision that has declined in aged individuals using simple brief exposures to light wavelengths that recharge the energy system that has declined in the retina cells, rather like re-charging a battery.

"The technology is simple and very safe, using a deep red light of a specific wavelength, that is absorbed by mitochondria in the retina that supply energy for cellular function.

"Our devices cost about £12 to make, so the technology is highly accessible to members of the public."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200629120241.htm

Hookworm trial offers new hope to MS patients

June 18, 2020

Science Daily/University of Nottingham

Parasitic worms could offer a new treatment hope for patients suffering from the autoimmune disease multiple sclerosis, according to experts from the University of Nottingham.

The findings of the research, published in the journal JAMA Neurology, show that infecting MS patients with a safe dose of the hookworm parasite Necator americanus induces immunoregulatory responses and boosts the number of cells which help keep the immune system under control.

The research was led by Cris Constantinescu, Professor of Neurology in the University's School of Clinical Sciences and a leading MS expert, and David Idris Pritchard, Professor of Parasite Immunology in the University's School of Pharmacy, who has spent decades studying the biology of the hookworm. The study was funded by the Multiple Sclerosis Society.

MS is a condition that can affect the brain and spinal cord, causing a wide range of potential symptoms, including problems with vision, arm or leg movement, sensation or balance. Whilst treatments are available, there is currently no cure.

The study aimed to show that the presence of hookworms in the body switches off the mechanism by which the body's immune system becomes overactive -- the main cause of MS -- reducing both the severity of symptoms and the number of relapses experienced by the patients.

71 patients were recruited for a controlled clinical trial who suffer from the most common type of the disease, relapsing remitting MS (RRMS).

Symptoms in patients such as vision problems, dizziness and fatigue, appear and then fade away either partially or completely, and secondary progressive MS with superimposed relapses.

Half of the patients on the trial, received a low dose of the hookworms -- 25 of the microscopic larvae -- on a plaster applied to the arm, while the other half received a placebo plaster.

At the beginning of the trial, the participants underwent an MRI scan to record the scarring or lesions on the brain which are present in MS patients. Over the course of nine months, all the patients were scanned on a regular basis for new or worsening lesions which can be a tell-tale sign of relapse.

The results at the end of the trial showed that the total number of new MRI lesions did not differ significantly between patients receiving hookworm and those receiving placebo. However, more than half the patients on hookworm had no new lesions at all.

In addition, the scientists found an increase in the percentage of regulatory T cells found within patients who received the hookworm. These cells help to keep the immune system under control, and are deficient in MS patients. The results showed that the hookworm increases this type of cell which could be beneficial in the treatment of MS.

Professor Constantinescu said: "The findings of our study are encouraging. Whilst the results are modest in comparison to the current very potent and highly effective treatments available, some patients with milder disease or more inclined for natural treatments may consider this as an option.

"On the more biological level, it is worth harnessing immunoregulatory mechanisms, for example increasing regulatory T cells in MS (and possibly other autoimmune diseases). Further studies are now needed to establish whether different protocols can enhance this benefit. For instance, would a booster infection in around nine months enhance the regulatory T cells responses and enhance the clinical/radiological benefit?"

Professor Pritchard is equally encouraged by the results of the trial. He said: "In essence, we were able to safely and easily deliver a living drug to humans, an organism which has long lasting modulatory effects on the immune system, given the time the adult parasite is resident in the small intestine (years). Clearly, this study has set the scene for follow up trials, where I would envisage booster infections being given to enhance the immune modulation already recorded. The dosage used in the current study (25 larvae) was the maximum permitted under regulatory guidelines, therefore boosting with this dose would be preferable to increasing the level of primary exposure."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200618150223.htm

More than 80 percent of Americans report nation's future is significant source of stress

As protests continue, more than half of black adults say discrimination a significant stressor

June 18, 2020

Science Daily/American Psychological Association

More than 8 in 10 Americans (83%) say the future of our nation is a significant source of stress, according to the American Psychological Association's most recent survey report, Stress in America™ 2020: Stress in The Time of COVID-19, Volume Two. The previous high was 69%, reported in 2018 as part of APA's annual Stress in America survey.

Following protests over racial injustice sparked by the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police -- all set against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic -- more than 7 in 10 (72%) Americans say that this is the lowest point in the country's history that they can remember.

The report includes findings from two recent surveys conducted by The Harris Poll on behalf of APA: Wave 2 of the COVID Tracker conducted from May 21 to June 3, 2020, among 3,013 adults age 18+ who reside in the U.S. and an additional poll about the current civil unrest conducted from June 9 to 11, 2020, among 2,058 adults age 18+ who reside in the U.S.

"We are experiencing the collision of three national crises -- the COVID-19 pandemic, economic turmoil and recent, traumatic events related to systemic racism. As a result, the collective mental health of the American public has endured one devasting blow after another, the long-term effects of which many people will struggle with for years to come," said Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, APA's chief executive officer. "We don't have to be passive players in mitigating the rapidly increasing stress Americans are facing and its consequences on our health."

The proportion of black Americans who say discrimination is a significant source of stress has increased significantly in the past month, with 55% of black adults saying discrimination is a significant source of stress in Wave 2 of the COVID Tracker. At the beginning of May, only 42% said the same in Wave 1. In the most recent civil unrest poll, more than 7 in 10 Americans (71%) say police violence toward minorities is a significant source of stress. But most Americans (67%) say the current movement against systemic racism and police brutality is going to lead to meaningful change in America.

"America has an ongoing racism pandemic that continues to devastate the lives and livelihoods of our black communities," Evans said. "The majority of Americans are finally coming to terms with the reality people of color have known all too well for all too long and that research has documented: Racism poses a public health threat and the psychological burden is immense. We have a lot of healing to do as a nation. Increased access to psychological supports is one way to move us more in the right direction."

In a continued focus on pandemic-related stress through the COVID Tracker, the report also shows nearly 2 in 3 adults (66%) say the government response to the COVID-19 pandemic is a significant source of stress. Of those, 84% say the federal government response is a significant source of stress, followed by state (72%) and local governments (64%).

Overall, more than 6 in 10 Americans (63%) agree that the thought of the U.S. reopening causes them stress, but just over 7 in 10 adults (72%) say they are confident they can protect themselves from coronavirus once the U.S. reopens. At the same time, 65% say they wish they had more information about what they should do as their community reopens.

Stress in America™ 2020: Stress in the Time of COVID-19, Volume Two is available at: https://www.apa.org/news/press/releases/stress/2020/report-june

Methodology

Wave 2 of the COVID Tracker was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of the American Psychological Association between May 21 and June 3, 2020, among 3,013 adults age 18+ who reside in the U.S. Interviews were conducted in English and Spanish. Data were weighted to reflect their proportions in the population based on the 2019 Current Population Survey by the U.S. Census Bureau. Weighting variables included age by gender, race/ethnicity, education, region, household income and time spent online. Hispanic adults also were weighted for acculturation taking into account respondents' household language as well as their ability to read and speak in English and Spanish. Country of origin (U.S./non-U.S.) also was included for Hispanic and Asian subgroups. Weighting variables for Gen Z adults (ages 18 to 23) included education, age by gender, race/ethnicity, region, household income and size of household. Propensity score weighting was used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.

The Civil Unrest Survey was conducted online within the United States by The Harris Poll on behalf of the American Psychological Association between June 9 and 11, 2020, among 2,058 adults age 18+ who reside in the U.S. Results were weighted for age within gender, region, race/ethnicity, household income, education, marital status and size of household where necessary to align them with their actual proportions in the population. Propensity score weighting was also used to adjust for respondents' propensity to be online.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200618124803.htm

Working in the sun: Heating of the head may markedly affect safety and performance

Prolonged exposure of the head to strong sunlight significantly impairs cognitively dominated functions and coordination of complex motor tasks

June 16, 2020

Science Daily/Faculty of Science - University of Copenhagen

Approximately half of the global population live in regions where heat stress is an issue that affects the ability to live healthy and productive lives. It is well known that working in hot conditions, and the associated hyperthermia (rise in body temperature), may impair the ability to perform physically demanding manual work. However, the effects on cognitively dominated functions, and specifically the influence from sunlight exposure on human brain temperature and function have not been documented.

This new study shows clear negative effects of prolonged exposure of the head to sunlight, implying that we may have underestimated its true effects, as previous studies have traditionally been conducted in the laboratory, without accounting for the marked effect that sun radiation may have -- in particular, when the head is exposed for a prolonged period.

"The novelty of the study is that we provide evidence that direct exposure to sunlight -- especially to the head -- impairs motor and cognitive performance," says professor Lars Nybo, the project coordinator from Department of Nutrition, Exercise and Sports, UCPH. He continues, "Adding to this, the decline in motor and cognitive performance was observed at 38.5 degrees, which is a 1 degree lower body temperature than previous studies have shown, which is a substantial difference."

Direct sunlight to the head may affect productivity

Many workers in agriculture, construction and transport are at risk from being affected by exposure to strong sunlight, such as we experience in Europe the summer months. Postdoc Jacob Piil and professor Lars Nybo from UCPH headed this study in collaboration with colleagues from Thessaly University in Greece and they are convinced that the finding have implications not only for the workers' health, but also for their work performance and safety:

"Health and performance impairments provoked by thermal stress are societal challenges intensifying with global warming and that is a prolonged problem we must try to mitigate. But we must also adapt solution to prevent the current negative effects when e.g. workers are exposed and this study emphasize that it is of great importance that people working or undertaking daily activities outside should protect their head against sunlight. The ability to maintain concentration and avoid attenuation of motor-cognitive performance is certainly of relevance for work and traffic safety as well as for minimizing the risks of making mistakes during other daily tasks," says associate professor Andreas Flouris from FAME Laboratory in Greece.

Taken together, these results suggest that science may have underestimated the true impact of heat stress, for example during a heat wave, as solar radiation has not been investigated before. Future studies should incorporate sunlight, as this seems to have a selective effect on the head and the brain.

These findings highlight the importance of including the effect of sunlight radiative heating of the head and neck in future scientific evaluations of environmental heat stress impacts, and specific protection of the head to minimize harmful effects.

Facts about the study

Eight healthy, active males, aged 27 -- 41, participated in the study. The motor-cognitive test consisted of four different computer math and logical tasks that relied on fine motor precision. Four lamps were positioned to radiate either on the lower-body or on the head (back, sides and top -- to avoid blinding of the participants).

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200616083404.htm

Depression associated with greater risk of cardiovascular disease

The global study tracked 145,862 middle-aged participants from 21 countries

June 16, 2020

Science Daily/Simon Fraser University

A new study co-led by Simon Fraser University health sciences professor Scott Lear provides further evidence of the link between depressive symptoms and an increased risk of heart disease and early death.

The global study tracked 145,862 middle-aged participants from 21 countries and found a 20 per cent increase in cardiovascular events and death in people with four or more depressive symptoms. The risks were twice as high in urban areas -- where the majority of the global population will be living by 2050 -- and more than double in men.

Depression and mental health issues are highly prevalent in Canada. One in five Canadians will experience a mental health problem during their lifetime and eight per cent will experience a major depressive event.

Lear says the results are timely as experts anticipate an increase in the number of people dealing with mental health issues as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The data suggests that depressive symptoms should be considered as important as traditional risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure and high cholesterol when preventing heart disease and early death.

The study results, published this month in JAMA Psychiatry, lend credibility to existing World Health Organization (WHO) policies to integrate treatment and prevention of mental disorders into primary care.

The study concludes that a greater awareness of the physical health risks associated with depression is needed.

Researchers suggest that a comprehensive approach to tackling non-communicable diseases and mental disorders -- to achieve health-related UN Sustainable Development Goals -- needs to be a global priority.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200616100817.htm

60 minutes of endurance training is enough to shift body clock in mice

June 15, 2020

Science Daily/The Physiological Society

New research published today in the Journal of Physiology shows that just one 60 minutes bout of exercise shifted the muscle clocks of mice by around an hour in either direction. If this research is replicated in humans, it makes a case for prescribing exercise for night-shift workers and for treating diseases like heart disease, both of which can result in disrupted clocks throughout the body.

Clocks exist in virtually all our cells to temporally coordinate cell specific functions. The setting of our clocks are sensitive to cues like changes in light throughout the day, or our time of eating. Researchers at the University of Florida found that the clocks in muscles of mice were "listening" to information from their muscle contractions during exercise.

This means that exercise is a cue for setting the clocks in muscles. The researchers determined this by studying mice that ran in different phases of the day: in the middle of their rest phase, an hour before starting their active phase, and in the middle of their active phase. Active and rest phases in mice are equivalent to day and night in humans. They then looked at how the amount of a primary clock protein changed over the course of multiple days following muscle contractions. Their results showed that depending on the timing of contractions the clocks shifted about an hour to either an earlier or later time and that this does not require circulating hormones or the central clock.

In other words, the timing of exercise during the day, can rewind or fast forward our muscle body clocks, so fine-tuning this could allow precise treatment of conditions where the body clocks either is running ahead or behind.

Researchers carried this research out in mice rather than humans as it would require multiple muscle biopsies, which are invasive procedures. Although this research has been done in mice thus far, it can be taken forward in patients without the need for clinical trials, as it calls for a prescription of exercise timing for certain conditions, such as heart disease.

Christopher Wolff, a co-first author on the study said:

"This research is really important because it highlights the effect exercise can have on our body clocks. If this is replicated in humans it means that night-shift workers can use exercise to help shift their body clocks. We may also be able to use exercise as a treatment for 'body clock disorders' that can occur in many chronic diseases such as heart disease."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200615212715.htm

How COVID-19 lockdown has altered sleep in the US and Europe

June 10, 2020

Science Daily/Cell Press

Two new studies show that relaxed school and work schedules and more time spent at home has led people to sleep more on average with less 'social jetlag' as indicated by a reduced shift in sleep timing and duration on work days versus free days. But, at the same time, one of the studies also finds that the pandemic has taken a toll when it comes to self-reported sleep quality.

Stay-at-home orders and "lockdowns" related to the COVID-19 pandemic have had a major impact on the daily lives of people around the world and that includes the way that people sleep, two studies report June 10 in the journal Current Biology. Both studies show that relaxed school and work schedules and more time spent at home has led people to sleep more on average with less "social jetlag" as indicated by a reduced shift in sleep timing and duration on work days versus free days. But, at the same time, one of the studies also finds that the pandemic has taken a toll when it comes to self-reported sleep quality.

"Usually, we would expect a decrease in social jetlag to be associated with reports of improved sleep quality," says sleep researcher and cognitive neuroscientist Christine Blume from the University of Basel's Centre for Chronobiology, Switzerland. "However, in our sample, overall sleep quality decreased. We think that the self-perceived burden, which substantially increased during this unprecedented COVID-19 lockdown, may have outweighed the otherwise beneficial effects of a reduced social jetlag."

In their study, Blume and colleagues including Marlene Schmidt and Christian Cajochen explored the effects of the strictest phase of the COVID-19 lockdown on the relationship between social and biological rhythms as well as sleep during a six-week period from mid-March until end of April 2020 in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. Their data showed that the lockdown reduced the mismatch between social and biological sleep-wake timing as people began working from home more and sleeping more regular hours from day to day. People also slept about 15 minutes longer each night. However, the self-reported data indicated a perception that sleep quality had declined.

In the other study, Kenneth Wright at the University of Colorado, Boulder's Sleep and Chronobiology Laboratory and colleagues asked similar questions by comparing sleep prior to and during Stay-at-Home orders in 139 university students as they shifted from taking their classes in-person to taking them remotely. As the team reports, nightly sleep duration increased by about 30 minutes during weekdays and 24 minutes on weekends. The timing of sleep also became more regular from day to day, and there was less social jetlag.

Students stayed up about 50 minutes later while staying home during weekdays and about 25 minutes later on weekends. Students that tended to sleep less before the effects of COVID-19 took hold showed the greatest increase in the amount of sleep after they stopped going to in-person classes. After the Stay-at-Home orders went into effect, 92 percent of students got the recommended 7 hours or more of sleep per night, up from 84 percent before.

"Insufficient sleep duration, irregular and late sleep timing, and social jetlag are common in modern society and such poor sleep health behaviors contribute to and worsen major health and safety problems, including heart disease and stroke, weight gain and obesity, diabetes, mood disorders such as depression and anxiety, substance abuse, and impaired immune health, as well as morning sleepiness, cognitive impairment, reduced work productivity, poor school performance and risk of accident/drowsy driving crashes," Wright said. "Our findings provide further evidence that poor sleep behaviors are modifiable in university students. A better understanding of which factors during Stay-at-Home orders contributed to changed sleep health behaviors may help to develop sleep health intervention strategies."

"Not surprisingly, this unprecedented situation of the pandemic and the lockdown increased self-perceived burden and had adverse effects on sleep quality," Blume said. "On a positive note, though, the relaxation of social schedules also led to an improved alignment between external or social factors determining our sleep-wake timing and our body's internal biological signals. This was also associated with overall, more sleep."

From a sleep health perspective, the increase in sleep duration and regularity are welcome changes, say the researchers. For those having trouble with sleep quality, Blume suggests engaging in physical activity under the open sky.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200610112107.htm

Disrupted sleep increases the risk of cardiovascular disease by promoting inflammation

June 4, 2020

Science Daily/PLOS

Sleep disruption has been shown to be associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis, but the mechanism has been unclear. A new study in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Raphael Vallat, Vyoma Shah, and Matthew Walker of the University of California at Berkeley and colleagues reveals that fragmented sleep exacerbates atherosclerosis and may raise the risk of stroke via an effect on inflammatory pathways. These results provide a mechanism to explain the long-standing observation that poor sleep increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, and suggest simple and direct ways to reduce such risk.

To test whether the effect may be due in part to increased inflammatory signaling, the authors measured sleep disruption through both sleep lab-based polysomnography and a simple movement detector worn on the wrist over multiple nights (actigraphy). They used standard blood cell counts to measure levels of neutrophils and monocytes, two types of white blood cells responsible for driving inflammatory pathways.

They found that sleep fragmentation, as measured by actigraphy, predicted both higher neutrophil (but not monocyte) counts and higher coronary artery calcium, a measure of atherosclerosis pathology. Using a statistical method known as mediation analysis, they showed that the influence of sleep fragmentation on coronary artery calcium was mediated through the increase in neutrophils; in other words, poor sleep led to an increase in neutrophils, which in turn led to an increase in atherosclerosis. The influence of sleep disruption on neutrophils and atherosclerosis remained significant after accounting for multiple known contributors to artery disease, including age, sex, ethnicity, body mass index, smoking, blood pressure, and other factors.

A similar association was found for sleep disruption as measured by polysomnography, although it was not as robust, remaining significant after correcting for some but not all contributors, a difference the authors suggest may be due to the shorter duration of polysomnography (a single night) versus actigraphy (one week). No association was found for subjectively reported poor sleep, in which subjects were asked to recall the quality of their sleep, a finding which suggests that asking patients about the sleep may not be a useful tool for assessing their sleep-related risk of heart disease.

"Improving sleep may offer a novel way to reduce inflammation and thus reduce the risk of atherosclerosis," Walker said. "These findings may help inform public health guidelines that seek to increase the continuity of sleep as a way to improve health and decrease the burden of heart disease on society."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200604152108.htm

Sleep, death and ... the gut?

June 4, 2020

Science Daily/Harvard Medical School

A new study finds a causal link between sleep deprivation and death. In sleep-deprived fruit flies, death is preceded by the accumulation of molecules known as reactive oxidative species in the gut. When fruit flies were given antioxidant compounds that neutralize ROS, sleep-deprived flies remained active and had normal lifespans. The findings may one day inform new approaches to counteract the harmful effects of insufficient sleep in humans.

The first signs of insufficient sleep are universally familiar. There's tiredness and fatigue, difficulty concentrating, perhaps irritability or even tired giggles. Far fewer people have experienced the effects of prolonged sleep deprivation, including disorientation, paranoia and hallucinations.

Total, prolonged sleep deprivation, however, can be fatal. While it has been reported in humans only anecdotally, a widely cited study in rats conducted by Chicago-based researchers in 1983 showed that a total lack of sleep inevitably leads to death. Yet, despite decades of study, a central question has remained unsolved: why do animals die when they don't sleep?

Now, Harvard Medical School neuroscientists have identified an unexpected, causal link between sleep deprivation and premature death. In a study on sleep-deprived fruit flies, researchers found that death is always preceded by the accumulation of molecules known as reactive oxidative species (ROS) in the gut.

When fruit flies were given antioxidant compounds that neutralize and clear ROS from the gut, sleep-deprived flies remained active and had normal lifespans. Additional experiments in mice confirmed that ROS accumulate in the gut when sleep is insufficient.

The findings, published in Cell on June 4, suggest the possibility that animals can indeed survive without sleep under certain circumstances. The results open new avenues of study to understand the full consequences of insufficient sleep and may someday inform the design of approaches to counteract its detrimental effects in humans, the authors said.

"We took an unbiased approach and searched throughout the body for indicators of damage from sleep deprivation. We were surprised to find it was the gut that plays a key role in causing death," said senior study author Dragana Rogulja, assistant professor of neurobiology in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS.

"Even more surprising, we found that premature death could be prevented. Each morning, we would all gather around to look at the flies, with disbelief to be honest. What we saw is that every time we could neutralize ROS in the gut, we could rescue the flies," Rogulja said.

Scientists have long studied sleep, a phenomenon that appears to be fundamental for life, yet one that in many ways remains mysterious. Almost every known animal sleeps or exhibits some form of sleeplike behavior. Without enough of it, serious consequences ensue. In humans, chronic insufficient sleep is associated with heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancer, obesity, depression and many other conditions.

Previous research has shown that prolonged, total sleep restriction can lead to premature death in animal models. In attempts to answer how sleep deprivation culminates in death, most research efforts have focused on the brain, where sleep originates, but none have yielded conclusive results.

Gut accumulation

Spearheaded by study co-first authors Alexandra Vaccaro and Yosef Kaplan Dor, both research fellows in neurobiology at HMS, the team carried out a series of experiments in fruit flies, which share many sleep-regulating genes with humans, to search for signs of damage caused by sleep deprivation throughout the body. To monitor sleep, the researchers used infrared beams to constantly track the movement of flies housed in individual tubes.

They found that flies can sleep through physical shaking, so the team turned to more sophisticated methods. They genetically manipulated fruit flies to express a heat-sensitive protein in specific neurons, the activity of which are known to suppress sleep. When flies were housed at 29 degrees C (84 degrees F), the protein induced neurons to remain constantly active, thus preventing the flies from sleeping.

After 10 days of temperature-induced sleep deprivation, mortality spiked among the fruit flies and all died by around day 20. Control flies that had normal sleep lived up to approximately 40 days in the same environmental conditions.

Because mortality increased around day 10, the researchers looked for markers of cell damage on that and preceding days. Most tissues, including in the brain, were indistinguishable between sleep-deprived and non-deprived flies, with one notable exception.

The guts of sleep-deprived flies had a dramatic buildup of ROS -- highly reactive, oxygen-containing molecules that in large amounts can damage DNA and other components within cells, leading to cell death. The accumulation of ROS peaked around day 10 of sleep deprivation, and when deprivation was stopped, ROS levels decreased.

Additional experiments confirmed that ROS builds up in the gut of only those animals that experienced sustained sleep loss, and that the gut is indeed the main source of this apparently lethal ROS.

"We found that sleep-deprived flies were dying at the same pace, every time, and when we looked at markers of cell damage and death, the one tissue that really stood out was the gut," Vaccaro said. "I remember when we did the first experiment, you could immediately tell under the microscope that there was a striking difference. That almost never happens in lab research."

The team also examined whether ROS accumulation occurs in other species by using gentle, continuous mechanical stimulation to keep mice awake for up to five days. Compared to control animals, sleep-deprived mice had elevated ROS levels in the small and large intestines but not in other organs, a finding consistent with the observations in flies.

Death rescue

To find out if ROS in the gut play a causal role in sleep deprivation-induced death, the researchers looked at whether preventing ROS accumulation could prolong survival.

They tested dozens of compounds with antioxidant properties known to neutralize ROS and identified 11 that, when given as a food supplement, allowed sleep-deprived flies to have a normal or near-normal lifespan. These compounds, such as melatonin, lipoic acid and NAD, were particularly effective at clearing ROS from the gut. Notably, supplementation did not extend the lifespan of non-deprived flies.

The role of ROS removal in preventing death was further confirmed by experiments in which flies were genetically manipulated to overproduce antioxidant enzymes in their guts. These flies had normal to near-normal lifespans when sleep-deprived, which was not the case for control flies that overproduced antioxidant enzymes in the nervous system.

The results demonstrate that ROS buildup in the gut plays a central role in causing premature death from sleep deprivation, the researchers said, but cautioned that many questions remain unanswered.

"We still don't know why sleep loss causes ROS accumulation in the gut, and why this is lethal," said Kaplan Dor. "Sleep deprivation could directly affect the gut, but the trigger may also originate in the brain. Similarly, death could be due to damage in the gut or because high levels of ROS have systemic effects, or some combination of these."

Insufficient sleep is known to interfere with the body's hunger signaling pathways, so the team also measured fruit fly food intake to analyze whether there were potential associations between feeding and death. They found that some sleep-deprived flies ate more throughout the day compared with non-deprived controls. However, restricting access to food had no effect on survival, suggesting that factors beyond food intake are involved.

The researchers are now working to identify the biological pathways that lead to ROS accumulation in the gut and subsequent physiological disruptions.

The team hopes that their work will inform the development of approaches or therapies to offset some of the negative consequences of sleep deprivation. One in three American adults gets less than the recommended seven hours of sleep per night, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and insufficient sleep is a normal part of life for many around the world.

"So many of us are chronically sleep deprived. Even if we know staying up late every night is bad, we still do it," Rogulja said. "We believe we've identified a central issue that, when eliminated, allows for survival without sleep, at least in fruit flies."

"We need to understand the biology of how sleep deprivation damages the body, so that we can find ways to prevent this harm," she said.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/06/200604152053.htm

Public parks guaranteeing sustainable well-being

May 27, 2020

Science Daily/Université de Genève

An international team led by the University of Geneva (UNIGE) has ascertained how green spaces contribute to the well-being of city-dwellers. The research shows that parks play an essential role in the well-being of individuals, regardless of their social class, and that they cannot be replaced by other venues where people meet, such as shopping centers. When these parks are closed -- as during the COVID-19 pandemic -- it intensifies inequalities in well-being.

Public parks are many things to many people: a space devoid of domestic chores and patriarchal expectations, a spot to cultivate friendship or love, a place where you can experience a feeling of freedom that is absent elsewhere, an opportunity to "visit" trees from a country you have not seen in a long time, a way of being part of a group while sitting alone on your bench -- or even the perfect setting for running a small business to help you get by. Public parks are all this and much more if we're to believe the inhabitants of four Asian mega-cities -- Chennai, Singapore, Manila and Shanghai -- who were interviewed as part of a recently-published study. Green spaces, we learn, do much more than simply benefit biodiversity and health: they also meet numerous other essential human needs that open the door to sustainable well-being, a concept based on a combination of personal well-being and the necessities of sustainable development.

"There are many theories that try to define human well-being," begins Marlyne Sahakian, a professor in the Department of Sociology in UNIGE's Faculty of Social Sciences and the study's first author. "Instead of using subjective notions such as happiness, we used a list of nine 'protected needs' that has recently been developed by colleagues from the University of Basel. These needs correspond to what society can offer the population through the public sector. This list of protected needs is the result of an analysis of the scientific literature and was validated among the Swiss population and by panels of experts."

The nine capital needs

In concrete terms, the list is made up of the following nine items: (1) the availability of goods that satisfy vital needs; (2) turning your own idea of everyday life into reality; (3) living in a pleasant environment; (4) growing as a person; (5) self-determination; (6) doing activities that you value; (7) being part of a community; (8) taking part in decisions about the future of society; and (9) being protected by society.

Armed with this list, researchers from the four Asian cities, co-signatories of the study, asked residents about their use of public parks and the benefits they derived from them. An analysis of their responses first showed that ordinary people can assess their well-being using these protected needs, making the distinction between what they need and what they want. "This suggests that meeting human needs is a societal goal that can be discussed by diverse groups of people around the world," says Professor Sahakian before adding: "This has implications for city planning measures designed to ensure everyone's sustainable well-being for today and tomorrow. In the cities of South Asia in particular, parks -- which offer a naturally cool, shaded microclimate -- are a precious alternative to other leisure spaces, such as air-conditioned shopping centres."

Inclusion rather than exclusion

The research, which was supported by the Swiss Network for International Studies, also found that the use of green spaces fulfils all the protected needs to a certain degree. Three of these needs (3, 4 and 7) however, have a score that is significantly higher than the others.

"Going to the park is a social activity that requires more than just a green space, argues Professor Sahakian. People do different kinds of things in parks to meet the same need, such as exercising, chatting with other people, reading a book, meeting a group or learning about biodiversity. These are very inclusive spaces, where there is ready access for everyone, unlike what happens in shopping centres, which can operate quite a strong form of social segregation. In the immediate context of a post-COVID-19 environment, where public spending will probably be more limited than before, it is all the more important to maintain the infrastructure of the parks (water access points, toilets, trails, etc.) and to ensure access so that they can continue to meet everyone's needs."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200527105025.htm

Too little sleep can mean more asthma attacks in adults

First study examining adults with asthma shows negative impacts of sleep deprivation

May 12, 2020

Science Daily/American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology

A good night's sleep is crucial to good health. A new article in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) reveals that too little sleep, and occasionally too much sleep, can negatively impact adults with asthma.

"Previous research revealed that poor sleep quality has a negative effect on asthma symptoms in adolescents," says Faith Luyster, PhD, lead author of the study. "Our study shows that adults with asthma are equally affected by too little (or sometimes too much) sleep. Compared to normal sleepers, short and long sleepers had a higher proportion of people who reported having an asthma attack in the past year (45 percent vs. 59 percent and 51 percent respectively) and had more days with impaired health-related quality of life. Impaired quality of life was characterized by more days of poor physical and mental health.

The study surveyed 1,389 adults who were 20 years and older who self-identified as having asthma. Of the group, 25.9 percent slept 5 hours or less, 65.9 percent slept 6-8 hours and 8.2 percent slept 9 or more hours. Sleep duration was measured by a single question, "How much sleep do you usually get at night on weekdays or workdays?" "Short sleepers" were more likely to be younger and non-White, while "long sleepers" were more likely to be older, female and a smoker.

Short sleepers, as compared to normal sleepers, had a greater likelihood of an asthma attack, dry cough, and an overnight hospitalization during the past year. Short sleepers also had significantly worse health related quality of life -- including days of poor physical and mental health and inactive days due to poor health -- and more frequent general healthcare use during the past year as compared to normal sleepers. The odds for long sleepers to have some activity limitation due to wheezing was higher when compared to normal sleepers. No significant differences in other patient-reported outcomes and healthcare use were observed between the long and normal sleepers.

"Disturbed sleep in an asthma patient can be a red flag indicating their asthma isn't well-controlled," says allergist Gailen D. Marshall, MD, PhD, ACAAI member and Editor-in-Chief of Annals. "This study adds solid evidence to the practice of asthma patients discussing sleep issues with their allergist to help determine if they need to change their asthma plan to achieve adequate sleep as a component of overall good asthma management. It also warns that consequences can be expected when sleep patterns are chronically inadequate."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200512092552.htm

Middle age may be much more stressful now than in the '90s

May 7, 2020

Science Daily/Penn State

If life feels more stressful now than it did a few decades ago, you're not alone. Even before the novel coronavirus started sweeping the globe, a new study found that life may be more stressful now than it was in the 1990s.

A team of researchers led by Penn State found that across all ages, there was a slight increase in daily stress in the 2010s compared to the 1990s. But when researchers restricted the sample to people between the ages of 45 and 64, there was a sharp increase in daily stress.

"On average, people reported about 2 percent more stressors in the 2010s compared to people in the past," said David M. Almeida, professor of human development and family studies at Penn State. "That's around an additional week of stress a year. But what really surprised us is that people at mid-life reported a lot more stressors, about 19 percent more stress in 2010 than in 1990. And that translates to 64 more days of stress a year."

Almeida said the findings were part of a larger project aiming to discover whether health during the middle of Americans' lives has been changing over time.

"Certainly, when you talk to people, they seem to think that daily life is more hectic and less certain these days," Almeida said. "And so we wanted to actually collect that data and run the analyses to test some of those ideas."

For the study, the researchers used data collected from 1,499 adults in 1995 and 782 different adults in 2012. Almeida said the goal was to study two cohorts of people who were the same age at the time the data was collected but born in different decades. All study participants were interviewed daily for eight consecutive days.

During each daily interview, the researchers asked the participants about their stressful experiences throughout the previous 24 hours. For example, arguments with family or friends or feeling overwhelmed at home or work. The participants were also asked how severe their stress was and whether those stressors were likely to impact other areas of their lives.

"We were able to estimate not only how frequently people experienced stress, but also what those stressors mean to them," Almeida said. "For example, did this stress affect their finances or their plans for the future. And by having these two cohorts of people, we were able to compare daily stress processes in 1990 with daily stress processes in 2010."

After analyzing the data, the researchers found that participants reported significantly more daily stress and lower well-being in the 2010s compared to the 1990s. Additionally, participants reported a 27 percent increase in the belief that stress would affect their finances and a 17 percent increase in the belief that stress would affect their future plans.

Almeida said he was surprised not that people were more stressed now than in the 90s, but at the age group that was mainly affected.

"We thought that with the economic uncertainty, life might be more stressful for younger adults," Almeida said. "But we didn't see that. We saw more stress for people at mid-life. And maybe that's because they have children who are facing an uncertain job market while also responsible for their own parents. So it's this generational squeeze that's making stress more prevalent for people at mid-life."

Almeida said that while there used to be a stereotype about people experiencing a midlife crisis because of a fear of death and getting older, he suspects the study findings -- recently published in the journal American Psychologist -- suggest midlife distress may be due to different reasons.

"It may have to do with people at mid-life being responsible for a lot of people," Almeida said. "They're responsible for their children, oftentimes they're responsible for their parents, and they may also be responsible for employees at work. And with that responsibility comes more daily stress, and maybe that's happening more so now than in the past."

Additionally, Almeida said the added stress could partially be due to life "speeding up" due to technological advances. This could be particularly true during stressful times like the coronavirus pandemic, when tuning out the news can seem impossible.

"With people always on their smartphones, they have access to constant news and information that could be overwhelming," Almeida said.

Susan T. Charles, University of California, Irvine; Jacqueline Mogle, Penn State; Johanna Drewelies, Humboldt University Berlin; Carolyn M. Aldwin, Oregon State University; Avron Spiro III, Boston University Schools of Public Health and Medicine and Department of Veteran's Affairs; and Denis Gerstorf, Humboldt University Berlin and Penn State, also participated in this work.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200507094745.htm

Regularly attending religious services associated with lower risk of deaths of despair

May 6, 2020

Science Daily/Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

People who attended religious services at least once a week were significantly less likely to die from "deaths of despair," including deaths related to suicide, drug overdose, and alcohol poisoning, according to new research led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. The study showed that the association between service attendance and lower risk of deaths from despair was somewhat stronger for women in the study than for men.

"Despair is something that can confront anyone dealing with severe difficulties or loss. While the term 'deaths of despair' was originally coined in the context of working class Americans struggling with unemployment, it is a phenomenon that is relevant more broadly, such as to the health care professionals in our study who may be struggling with excessive demands and burnout, or to anyone facing loss. As such, we need to look for important community resources that can protect against it," said Tyler VanderWeele, John L. Loeb and Frances Lehman Loeb Professor of Epidemiology at Harvard Chan School. VanderWeele is also director of the Human Flourishing Program and co-director of the Initiative on Health, Religion and Spirituality at Harvard University.

The study will be published online in JAMA Psychiatry on May 6, 2020.

Religion may be a social determinant of health, and previous research has shown that attending religious services may be associated with a lower risk of various factors related to despair, including heavy drinking, substance misuse, and suicidality.

For this study, researchers analyzed data from the Nurses' Health Study II on 66,492 women as well as data from the Health Professionals Follow-Up Study on 43,141 men. Among the women, there were 75 deaths from despair: 43 suicides, 20 deaths from poisoning, and 12 deaths from liver disease and cirrhosis. Among the men there were 306 deaths from despair: 197 suicides, 6 deaths from poisoning, and 103 deaths from liver diseases and cirrhosis.

After adjusting for numerous variables, the study showed that women who attended services at least once per week had a 68% lower risk of death from despair compared to those never attending services. Men who attended services at least once per week had 33% lower risk of death from despair.

The study authors noted that religious participation may serve as an important antidote to despair and an asset for sustaining a sense of hope and meaning. They also wrote that religion may be associated with strengthened psychosocial resilience by fostering a sense of peace and positive outlook, and promoting social connectedness.

"These results are perhaps especially striking amidst the present COVID-19 pandemic," said Ying Chen, research associate and data scientist at the Human Flourishing Program at Harvard's Institute for Quantitative Social Science, and first author of the paper. "They are striking in part because clinicians are facing such extreme work demands and difficult conditions, and in part because many religious services have been suspended. We need to think what might be done to extend help to those at risk for despair."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/05/200506133627.htm

Eyes send an unexpected signal to the brain

A subset of retinal neurons communicates differently from the rest of the eye

April 30, 2020

Science Daily/Northwestern University

For decades, biology textbooks have stated that eyes communicate with the brain exclusively through one type of signaling pathway. But a new discovery shows that some retinal neurons take a road less traveled.

New research, led by Northwestern University, has found that a subset of retinal neurons sends inhibitory signals to the brain. Before, researchers believed the eye only sends excitatory signals. (Simply put: Excitatory signaling makes neurons to fire more; inhibitory signaling makes neurons to fire less.)

The Northwestern researchers also found that this subset of retinal neurons is involved in subconscious behaviors, such as synchronization of circadian rhythms to light/dark cycles and pupil constriction to intense bright lights. By better understanding how these neurons function, researchers can explore new pathways by which light influences our behavior.

"These inhibitory signals prevent our circadian clock from resetting to dim light and prevent pupil constriction in low light, both of which are adaptive for proper vision and daily function," said Northwestern's Tiffany Schmidt, who led the research. "We think that our results provide a mechanism for understanding why our eye is so exquisitely sensitive to light, but our subconscious behaviors are comparatively insensitive to light."

The research will be published in the May 1 issue of the journal Science.

Schmidt is an assistant professor of neurobiology at Northwestern's Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences. Takuma Sonoda, a former Ph.D. student in the Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience program, is the paper's first author.

To conduct the study, Schmidt and her team blocked the retinal neurons responsible for inhibitory signaling in a mouse model. When this signal was blocked, dim light was more effective at shifting the mice's circadian rhythms.

"This suggests that there is a signal from the eye that actively inhibits circadian rhythms realignment when environmental light changes, which was unexpected," Schmidt said. "This makes some sense, however, because you do not want to adjust your body's entire clock for minor perturbations in the environmental light/dark cycle, you only want this massive adjustment to take place if the change in lighting is robust."

Schmidt's team also found that, when the inhibitory signals from the eye were blocked, mice's pupils were much more sensitive to light.

"Our working hypothesis is that this mechanism keeps pupils from constricting in very low light," Sonoda said. "This increases the amount of light hitting your retina, and makes it easier to see in low light conditions. This mechanism explains, in least part, why your pupils avoid constricting until bright light intensifies."

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200430150201.htm

Heart disease more likely for adults with dysfunctional childhoods

Trauma, neglect, family dysfunction in childhood leads to health issues in 50s, 60s

April 28, 2020

Science Daily/Northwestern University

Children who experience trauma, abuse, neglect and family dysfunction are at increased risk of having heart disease in their 50s and 60s, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study.

Results from the study showed people exposed to the highest levels of childhood family environment adversity were more than 50 percent more likely to have a cardiovascular disease event such as a heart attack or stroke over a 30-year follow-up.

The longitudinal study of more than 3,600 participants is among the first to describe the trajectory of cardiovascular disease and death based on family environment ratings from young adulthood into older middle age.

The findings were published today, April 28, in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Children who experience this type of adversity are predisposed to higher rates of lifelong stress, smoking, anxiety, depression and sedentary lifestyle that persist into adulthood. These can lead to increased body mass index (BMI), diabetes, increased blood pressure, vascular dysfunction and inflammation.

"This population of adults is much more likely to partake in risky behaviors -- for example, using food as a coping mechanism, which can lead to problems with weight and obesity," said first author Jacob Pierce, a fourth-year medical student at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. "They also have higher rates of smoking, which has a direct link to cardiovascular disease."

Adults who were exposed to these risk factors as children may benefit from counseling on the link between coping with stress and controlling smoking and obesity, but more research is needed, Pierce said.

"Early childhood experiences have a lasting effect on adult mental and physical well-being, and a large number of American kids continue to suffer abuse and dysfunction that will leave a toll of health and social functioning issues throughout their lives," said senior author Joseph Feinglass, research professor of medicine and of preventive medicine at Feinberg. "Social and economic support for young children in the United States, which is low by the standards of other developed countries, has the biggest 'bang for the buck' of any social program."

The study used the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults (CARDIA) Study, a prospective cohort that has followed participants from recruitment in 1985-1986 through 2018, to determine how childhood psychosocial environment relates to cardiovascular disease incidence and mortality in middle age.

To get a broad idea of what a study participant's family environment was like during their childhood, participants answered survey questions that asked questions such as, "How often did a parent or other adult in the household make you feel that you were loved, supported, and cared for?" or "How often did a parent or other adult in the household swear at you, insult you, put you down or act in a way that made you feel threatened?"

The most predictive of cardiovascular disease later in life was "Did your family know what you were up to as a kid?" Pierce said.

While the study didn't specifically address attentiveness of parents, the findings indicate parents' involvement in their children's lives could impact their health later in life.

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/04/200428165751.htm