Generally speaking, people with ADHD tend to have trouble sleeping. But new research suggests that sleep problems may not only be a symptom of the disease, but may be behind its cause, reports the Washington Post. A perspective article (not a clinical trial) published in Frontiers in Psychiatry finds a strong correlation between ADHD and people with dysfunctional circadian rhythms, which determine when we sleep and wake. Physician Brandon Luu and co-author Nicholas Fabiano bring together “converging” evidence that people with ADHD often run on a much later internal schedule: up to 78 percent experience delayed sleep, with melatonin kicking in much later than normal.
“In other words, some people with ADHD may not just be ‘bad at lying down,'” observes an article on Proactive psychiatry. “Their internal clock might actually be off later.” Researchers urge clinicians to regularly screen for circadian disruption and use sleep tracking as a low-cost, low-risk tool for ADHD. The broader field is also moving in this direction: psychiatrists are investigating whether misaligned biological clocks are the cause of illnesses ranging from depression to schizophrenia, and are testing solutions such as morning light therapy, structured wake-up times and timed exercises to “phase-shift” patients closer to the demands of society, notes the Job. The idea is that in at least some cases, recalibrating the clock might ease the mind.
Gn Health
