Introduction:
Not only that, scientists recently revealed that mental health problems, including mental illness, may be partly due to lack of sleep. Researchers from various research institutions in the UK looked at the relationship between sleep and mental health using online surveys.
Not enough sleep, fat to make up! Not enough sleep, IQ to make up! Not only that, but scientists also recently revealed that mental health problems, including mental illness, may be partly due to lack of sleep.
Research:
A new study published in The Lancet Psychology (click on the bottom left corner to read the original article) found that after receiving cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for insomnia, people not only improved their sleep conditions, but also reduced symptoms of paranoia and hallucinations (two mental illnesses), but also improved depression and anxiety.
Daniel Freeman, one of the researchers, said: "The mainstream view is that sleep problems are either symptoms of a variety of mental health problems or are the result of these conditions. In fact, sleep problems are one of the causes of these diseases.”
Researchers from various research institutions in the UK looked at the relationship between sleep and mental health using online surveys. They surveyed students from 26 universities across the UK. If the participants were found to have insomnia problems after completing the questionnaire, they were invited to join the study.
Experiment:
A total of 3700,6 subjects participated in the study, who were randomly divided into two groups, one group receiving 20 online CBT treatments for 3 minutes each, which were designed to address insomnia, while the other group received no treatment. At the start of the study and after 10, 22 and <> weeks, participants in both groups were surveyed online.
The results showed that sleep and mental health were overall better in the first group than in the control group.
After accounting for non-treatment-related factors (inferred from the control group), participants treated with CBT experienced a reduction in insomnia symptoms by almost half, anxiety and depression symptoms by one-fifth, and paranoia and hallucinations by 10% and 25% respectively after 30 weeks.
Freeman said: "Insomnia doubles the risk of depression, and we now know that treating insomnia also reduces depression.”
Although manic symptoms increased in the treated group, the team believes that this reflects an increase in the happiness of the subjects, because the assessment of mania takes into account factors of happiness and confidence.
But the authors also acknowledge that there were also many subjects who stopped the study halfway, reaching 50%, and only 18% completed all 6 CBT treatments. They added that they also considered a number of different scenarios for those who dropped out of the study, including whether their mental health changed the same or got worse than those who continued to participate in the study, all of which came to the same conclusion.
Freeman said: "Although a lot of people dropped out of the study, we still observed this pattern. He added that the study also found that the relationship between sleep and mental health problems is a two-way street, with mental illness affecting sleep, albeit to a lesser extent.
Although most of the subjects did not have clinically significant mental health disorders, the researchers believe that sleep is likely to be one of the factors that contribute to a variety of serious mental health problems.
"The realistic view about mental health problems is that there are different levels of disease, and all the evidence suggests that the causes and treatments are similar in all severities," Freeman said. "And insomnia-based CBT treatment programs can do more than just help people sleep better."
Freeman said: "The good news is that insomnia is treatable, not only will sleep problems themselves improve, but also many other aspects of mental health. He added that because society doesn't have much prejudice against insomnia, focusing on sleep issues can give young people an avenue to discuss mental health issues.
Ian Hamilton, a lecturer in mental health at York University who was not involved in the study, noted that the study relied on participatory self-selection and self-assessment, which could have influenced the results, and that the subjects were college students.
But, he added, the study also offers hope. He said: "The important information provided by this study is that we can help young people with insomnia reduce their risk of mental illness. The challenge in addressing this problem is that people who provide mental health services often ask patients about sleep, but do not have the skills to address them.”
Nicole Tang, an insomnia and CBT treatment specialist at the University of Warwick, was not involved in the study, which he thinks is important. She said: "Given the increasing number of college students suffering from mental health disorders, this study suggests that it is logical to invest in improving sleep, and perhaps this is a very cost-effective solution to adolescent adult problems."
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