Long-lasting effects of disturbing the circadian rhythm or sleep in adolescence

May 17, 2024Brain research bulletin

Long-lasting effects of disrupting sleep or body clock in adolescence

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Abstract

Circadian disruptions during adolescence may have long-term effects that persist into adulthood.

Circadian rhythms regulate biological and behavioral processes across a near 24-hour cycle.
Chronotype, or circadian phase preference, shifts throughout the lifespan, with adolescents preferring later sleep-wake times.
Adolescence is a critical developmental period marked by significant neuroanatomical changes that enhance decision-making.
Disruptions in circadian rhythms during adolescence could lead to adverse consequences that last into adulthood.
Current research on long-term impacts of circadian disruptions in adolescence is limited compared to studies in adults.
Misalignment between school start times and adolescents' natural rhythms highlights the importance of understanding these disruptions.

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Circadian rhythms are endogenous, near 24-hour rhythms that regulate a multitude of biological and behavioral processes across the diurnal cycle in most organisms. Over the lifespan, a bell curve pattern emerges in circadian phase preference (i.e. chronotype), with children and adults generally preferring to wake earlier and fall asleep earlier, and adolescents and young adults preferring to wake later and fall asleep later than their adult counterparts. This well-defined shift speaks to the variability of circadian rhythmicity over the lifespan and the changing needs and demands of the brain as an organism develops, particularly in the adolescent period. Indeed, adolescence is known to be a critical period of development during which dramatic neuroanatomical changes are occurring to allow for improved decision-making. Due to the large amount of re-structuring occurring in the adolescent brain, circadian disruptions during this period could have adverse consequences that persist across the lifespan. While the detrimental effects of circadian disruptions in adults have been characterized in depth, few studies have longitudinally assessed the potential long-term impacts of circadian disruptions during adolescence. Here, we will review the evidence that disruptions in circadian rhythmicity during adolescence have effects that persist into adulthood. As biological and social time often conflict in modern society, with school start times misaligned with adolescents' endogenous rhythms, it is critical to understand the long-term impacts of disrupted circadian rhythmicity in adolescence.

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Long-lasting effects of disturbing the circadian rhythm or sleep in adolescence

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