Teens who stay up late have a higher risk of developing asthma and other allergies: Study

A recent study done in the University of Alberta, Canada found out that teenagers who stay up late and tend to sleep in till late morning were more susceptible to developing chronic allergies, infections and respiratory problems like asthma. The study was led by Dr Subhabrata Moitra from the department of pulmonary medicine. The experiment saw the participation of 1684 teenagers aged 13-14 who were put across a set of typical questions related to their sleeping habits such as were they a morning person or night person, time of the day when they felt the most tired or the usual time they woke up. After that, they were also asked questions related to their health, including whether they experienced sneezing, wheezing or any persistent allergic symptoms.

They were also quizzed about their family history of chronic health conditions like smoking and other causal factors related to asthma and allergies. The analysis saw stark results. It was observed that the teenagers who slept late had a three times higher chance of developing a problem like asthma than the ones who recorded better sleep.

While the researchers did not draw up a direct link between sleeping late and bad respiratory health, they did say that the onset of allergies and infections like asthma could be linked to hormonal disturbances related to sleep. Simply said, melatonin, our sleep hormone goes out of whack every time you sleep bad, which, in turn could trigger a host of reactions in the body, ranging from mood problems, tiredness, allergies or even weight gain.

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