The effects of sleep and light at night on melatonin in adolescents

Details

• Personal Author:
  Hersh C ; Richiutti V ; Schernhammer E ; Sisti J
• Description:
  OBJECTIVE: The circadian hormone melatonin has wide-reaching effects on human physiology. In adolescents, the impact of nighttime light exposure and other modifiable behavioral factors on melatonin levels is poorly understood. DESIGN: We cross-sectionally examined the influence of nighttime behaviors on melatonin levels in 100 adolescents (average age: 15.7; 55 female, 45 male), who completed a self-administered questionnaire and provided a first morning urine sample to assay for urinary 6-sulfatoxymelatonin (aMT6s) levels. We used mixed-effects regression models to test for differences in aMT6s levels by categories of covariates. RESULTS: Self-reported sleep duration, ambient light levels during sleep, and use of electronics after turning off lights did not significantly predict aMT6s levels. Compared to those who reported weekend bedtimes before 11 pm, urinary aMT6s levels were significantly lower among participants reporting weekend bedtimes after midnight (52.5 vs. 38.0 ng/mg creatinine, P trend=0.007). Sleep interruption also appeared to be significantly associated with lower urinary aMT6s levels, but only if lights were turned on during sleep interruption (43.0 ng/mg creatinine for participants with sleep interruption but not turning lights on, vs. 24.6 ng/mg creatinine for participants reporting that they turned on the light when their sleep was interrupted P difference=0.032). CONCLUSIONS: Our study suggests that self-reported sleep-related behaviors have little to no effect on adolescent circadian systems, though larger studies are needed to confirm our findings. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Adolescent Behavior Circadian Rhythm Lighting Men Occupational Health Safety Sleep Women
• Keywords:
  6-sulfatoxymelatonin Adolescents Author Keywords: Adolescents Behavior Patterns Circadian Rhythms Humans Light At Night Sleep Duration Teenagers
• ISSN:
  1109-3099
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Massachusetts ; Ohio ; OSHA Region 1 ; OSHA Region 5 ; Rhode Island
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  399-409
• Volume:
  14
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20047638
• Citation:
  Hormones 2015 Jul-Sep; 14(3):399-409
• Contact Point Address:
  Julia Sisti, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, 677 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
• Email:
  jss235@mail.harvard.edu
• CAS Registry Number:
  6-Sulfatoxymelatonin (CAS RN 2208-40-4)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2015
• NORA Priority Area:
  Healthcare and Social Assistance
• Performing Organization:
  Brigham and Women's Hospital, Inc., Boston, Massachusetts
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20100801
• Source Full Name:
  Hormones
• End Date:
  20190831
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:13fb68ce08175ef6ae149c735448207809b8900ab513e8adeeb997c539b6e159345ebfdb19c9e82de1624201c48a4cce00fefe28e6d43ee64ae6cac9e9659925
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/202652/cdc_202652_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 462.74 KB ]