Science & Technology Varying sleep time leads to unhealthy changes to gut bacteria

Small differences in sleeping habits between work and rest days could lead to unhealthy changes to the bacteria in our guts, a study suggests.

This may be partly a result of people with “social jetlag” having slightly poorer diets, the UK researchers found.

Heavily-disrupted sleep, particularly shift work, is known to have a negative impact on health.

Keeping bed times and wake times consistent and eating a balanced diet may help reduce our risk of disease.

The study of nearly 1,000 adults by Kings College London scientists found that even a 90-minute difference in the midpoint of your night’s sleep over the course of a normal week could influence the types of bacteria found in the human gut.

Having a wide range of different species of bacteria in your digestive system is really important. Some are better than others, but getting the right mix is key to preventing a number of diseases.

“[Social jetlag] can encourage microbiota species which have unfavourable associations with your health,” said Kate Bermingham, study author and senior nutrition scientist at health

Keeping bed times and wake times consistent and eating a balanced diet may help reduce our risk of disease science company Zoe.

Going to sleep and waking up at very different times during the week, compared to the weekend, is known as having social jetlag.

It is thought to affect more than 40% of the UK population, the study says, and is most common in teenagers and young adults, then tapers off as we age.

Participants in this study, in the European Journal of Nutrition, had their sleep and blood analysed, stool samples collected and

Alpha-gal syndrome: Meat allergy linked to tick bites rising, CDC says

The rate of Americans developing a rare meat allergy from tick bites is rising, researchers say, and may have already impacted as many as 450,000 people.

New data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Thursday shows a steep increase in cases of alpha-gal syndrome.

The allergy triggers a possibly life-threatening reaction to several types of meat or animal products.

US scientists have traced alphagal to saliva from the lone star tick.

The tick is identified by the white spot on its back and is mostly found in southern and eastern parts of the US. But experts warn that their range is expanding due to climate change.

Blood-sucking bites from the lone star, formally called the Amblyomma americanum, can make a person sick when they consume certain meat and animal products made from mammals.

The list of dangerous foods for people suffering from alphagal syndrome include pork, beef, rabbit, lamb, venison, gelatine, milk, some dairy products and certain pharmaceuticals.

Symptoms from the littleunderstood syndrome include stomach cramps, diarrhoea, hives and shortness of breath that could trigger fatal anaphylaxis.

Alpha-gel syndrome reactions can be different from person-toperson, ranging from mild to severe or even life-threatening, the CDC says. Anaphylaxis, a potentially life-threatening reaction involving multiple organ systems, may need urgent medical care.

But people may not have an allergic reaction after every alphagal exposure, the CDC notes.

Because of how slowly the body digests meat, it can be very difficult to spot any symptoms that do appear.

More than 110,000 cases have been detected since 2010, the CDC says. From 2017 to 2021 recorded everything they ate in a food questionnaire.

Those who had social jetlag (16%) were more likely to eat a diet laden with potatoes, including crisps and chips, plus sugary drinks, and less fruit and nuts.

Previous research showed people with social jetlag ate less fibre than those with more consistent sleeping times. Other studies found social jetlag was linked to weight gain, illness and mental fatigue.

“Poor quality sleep impacts choices - and people crave higher carb or sugary foods,” says Dr Bermingham.

An unhealthy diet can then affect levels of specific bacteria in the gut.

The researchers found that three out of the six microbiota species which were more plentiful in the guts of the social jetlag group are linked to poor diet quality, obesity and higher levels of inflammation and stroke risk.

The relationship between sleep, diet and gut bacteria is complicated and there is still a lot more to find out, the research team says.

In the meantime, their advice to keep things consistent, if you can, over the course of a week.

“Maintaining regular sleep patterns, so when we go to bed and when we wake each day, is an easily adjustable lifestyle behaviour we can all do, that may impact your health via your gut microbiome for the better,” says Dr Sarah Berry, from King’s College London.

WHAT IS A HEALTHY DIET?

The NHS website recommends you try to: eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables every day base meals on higher fibre starchy foods like potatoes, bread, rice or pasta have some dairy or dairy alternatives, and go for lower-fat or lower-sugar where possible eat some beans, pulses, fish, eggs, meat and other protein choose unsaturated oils and spreads, and eat them in small amounts drink plenty of fluids (at least six to eight glasses a day) (BBC) the number of cases increased by around 15,000 per year.

Due to difficulties with diagnosis, the CDC says that up to 450,000 Americans in total may have developed meat allergies due to alpha-gal.

A survey of 1,500 doctors and health workers from last year found that 42% of them had never heard of the syndrome.

In the survey, which was also released by the CDC on Thursday,

Easily Identifiable

about one-third of the group said they were “not too confident” in their ability to identify the disease. Only 5% said they were “very confident” in their ability.

The syndrome was not discovered until 2008 by accident after US researchers found unexpected results while testing a drug used to treat cancer.

The Ixodes holocyclus - aka the paralysis tick - has also caused similar meat allergies in the Sydney

region of Australia.

Experts warn people to cover up outdoors and to regularly check their bodies for tick bites. Tick bites can cause several dangerous illnesses - such as Lyme disease - and are most common during warmer months.

The CDC advises people outdoors to use insect repellent, such as those containing DEET, or to pre-treat clothing with a chemical called permethrin. (BBC)