Lack of enough sleep, more pain the next day

Sleep is a vital factor of a healthy lifestyle and in adequate amount it benefits the heart, mind, and weight of an individual.

Several studies have shown that lack of enough sleep increases the risks of heart diseases, high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity and causes irritability and anxiety the next day.

A new study by the Society of Neuroscience published in JNeurosci has revealed the relationship between sleep deprivation and more sensitivity to pain.

The findings showed that when a person lacked adequate sleep in a night, brain activity increases in the pain-sensing regions while activity is extended in areas responsible for regulating how we perceive painful stimuli.

In the first study, researchers kept healthy young adults participants awake through the night in a sleep lab, where they observed increased activity in the primary somatosensory cortex and reduced activity in regions of the striatum and insula cortex during a pain sensitivity task.

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Somatosensory cortex is part of the brain that receives all sensory input from the body.

Insula cortex connects sensory experience and emotional degree while striatum is largely known for facilitating voluntary movement.

Participants in the second online study who had poor sleep the night reported increased pain during the day.

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“The research showed how the brain processed pain differently when individuals lack enough sleep. However, self-reported sleep quality and sensitivity to pain varied night-to-night and day-to-day,” said Matthew Walker the lead researcher.

These new findings propose improving sleep quality as an effective approach for pain management.