The Potential Role of Sleep in Promoting a Healthy Body Composition: Underlying Mechanisms Determining Muscle, Fat, and Bone Mass and Their Association with Sleep
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Date
2022-07
Publication Type
Review Article
ETH Bibliography
yes
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Abstract
Sleep plays an essential role in human life. While sleep is a state elicited by the brain, its vital role reaches beyond maintaining brain health. Unhealthy sleeping habits have been associated with increased risk for inflammation, obesity, or diabetes. Evidence is emerging that sleep guides processes playing an important role in promoting the regulation of endocrine function involved in tissue regeneration and tissue remodelling. Thereby, sleep presumably is a critical factor contributing to the balance of core body tissues: bone, fat, and muscle mass. Given the increasing prevalence of various chronic diseases and comorbidities due to unhealthy lifestyle choices, sleep could be a key target to promote a healthy body composition up until old age. Here, we review the potential role of sleep and its underlying brain oscillations in body core tissues turnover. Specifically, we discuss potential underlying mechanisms linking sleep to body composition, both during rest and under challenging conditions. Among other described pathways, we highlight the possible role of the growth hormone that was found to be involved in the homeostasis of all core body tissues and has been strongly linked to brain activity dominating deep sleep, the so-called slow waves. Finally, we formulate important questions to be addressed in future research on the effect of sleep on body composition and specifically emphasize the importance of intervention studies to move from correlative to causal evidence.
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Publication status
published
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Book title
Journal / series
Volume
112 (7)
Pages / Article No.
673 - 701
Publisher
Karger
Event
Edition / version
Methods
Software
Geographic location
Date collected
Date created
Subject
Body composition; Sleep architecture; Slow wave sleep; Tissue metabolism; Growth hormone
Organisational unit
03963 - Wenderoth, Nicole / Wenderoth, Nicole
Notes
Funding
179795 - Boosting sleep to excel during the day: Elucidating the influence of sleep network dynamics on brain and body health (SNF)