Posted on 06/05/2021 7:33:05 AM PDT by ConservativeMind
Waking up just one hour earlier could reduce a person's risk of major depression by 23%, suggests a sweeping new genetic study published May 26 in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
The study of 840,000 people, by researchers at University of Colorado Boulder and the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, represents some of the strongest evidence yet that chronotype—a person's propensity to sleep at a certain time —influences depression risk.
Using novel statistical techniques, they asked: Do those with genetic variants which predispose them to be early risers also have lower risk of depression?
The answer is a firm yes.
Each one-hour earlier sleep midpoint (halfway between bedtime and wake time) corresponded with a 23% lower risk of major depressive disorder.
Put another way, if someone who normally goes to bed at 1 a.m. goes to bed at midnight instead and sleeps the same duration, they could cut their risk by 23%; if they go to bed at 11 p.m., they could cut it by about 40%.
It's unclear from the study whether those who are already early risers could benefit from getting up even earlier. But for those in the intermediate range or evening range, shifting to an earlier bedtime would likely be helpful.
Light days, dark nights key
What could explain this effect?
Some research suggests that getting greater light exposure during the day, which early-risers tend to get, results in a cascade of hormonal impacts that can influence mood.
For those wanting to shift themselves to an earlier sleep schedule, Vetter offers this advice:
"Keep your days bright and your nights dark," she says. "Have your morning coffee on the porch. Walk or ride your bike to work if you can, and dim those electronics in the evening."
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Your fighting depression has worked out well keep it up.
Already learned this on my own by accident. It works.
I wake up when the cats yell for breakfast.
Thinking about getting up early is depressing. 😉
I woke up at 0030, 0230, and 0430. It did nothing for me.
I suffer with just the opposite. I have extreme anxiety for the first few hours after I wake up.
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