Lack of sleep may contribute to food allergies

Previously, associations have been shown between both long and short sleep duration and obesity, cardiovascular disease, and diabetes. This has prompted a group of researchers based in the USA and China to investigate whether sleep duration is associated with sensitization to food and aeroallergens.

The study participants comprised 1534 rural Chinese adolescent twins aged 12-21 years who completed sleep questionnaires and skin prick tests to nine foods and five aeroallergens.

Compared with individuals with the highest recorded sleep duration, those who slept less were more likely to be sensitized to any food allergen, independent of percent body fat. The authors also observed a significant dose-response association between the number of positive skin prick tests and shortest sleep duration.

If further studies can prove short sleep duration is one of the risk factors for allergic sensitization, the authors believe the global burden of allergic diseases could be dramatically reduced by providing appropriate guidance on sleep duration for youth.

Reference: Zhang et al. 2011. Clinical and Experimental Allergy. DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2222.2010.03677.x.