Lack of sleep is not only harmful to the body, it can lead to vision loss as well; here’s how

An irregular sleeping pattern is not only harmful to the body, as a new study study links it to the development and progression of glaucoma. The study, published in BMJ Open journal, analysed the association between sleep behaviours and glaucoma. The cohort study based on UK Biobank data between 2006-2010 of more than 4,00,000 people aged 40 to 69, studied their diagnosis of glaucoma.

The research stated that compared with individuals who had a healthy sleep pattern, an excess risk of any glaucoma was observed among individuals with snoring and daytime sleepiness (HR 1.11, 95 per cent, CI 1.03 to 1.19) or insomnia and short/long sleep duration (HR 1.13, 95 per cent, CI 1.06 to 1.20), but not late chronotype sleep pattern (HR 0.98, 95 per cent, CI 0.93 to 1.03).
Glaucoma is caused damage to the optic nerve (Source: Getty Images/Thinkstock)
The study went on to observe that snoring, daytime sleepiness, insomnia, and short/long duration, individually or jointly, were all associated with the risk of glaucoma. “These findings underscore the need for sleep intervention for individuals at high risk of glaucoma as well as potential ophthalmologic screening among individuals with chronic sleep problems for glaucoma prevention,” mentioned the research.

Here’s what you need to understand
According to experts, glaucoma is called the silent thief of sight because there may be no symptoms in the early stages of the disease. “This condition threatens vision and is known to gradually steal sight without warning. the time glaucoma is detected, the patient has already suffered extensive peripheral vision damage which can no longer be restored,” said Dr Mahipal S. Sachdev, chairman, Centre for Sight in an earlier interaction.
Adding, Dr Rohit Pahwa, senior consultant eye surgeon and medical director, InstaVision Eye And Lasik Centre, New Delhi said that “glaucoma risk increases with sleep deprivation or insomnia“. “Eye pressure-related optic nerve damage, known as glaucoma, first affects peripheral vision before spreading to the centre, slowly causing vision loss,” he told .
Seven to eight hours a day, on average, is the amount of sleep that most people must get. “Anything outside of this range can be either too little or too much sleep,” Dr Pahwa said, adding that poor sleep is caused irregular work schedules, staying up too late, watching too much television before bed, consuming coffee before night, and eating too late or close to bedtime, which can create heartburn and disrupt sleep patterns.
Sleep apnea is associated with recurrent fall in oxygen level while one is sleeping. “This is one of the trigger factor for glaucoma in susceptible individuals. Recurrent fall in oxygen level may also lead to neo-vascularisation which further enhances the risk of glaucoma,” said Dr Ravi Shekhar Jha, director and head, pulmonology, Fortis Hospitals, Faridabad.
Although the exact cause is unknown, people who have sleep apnea “may be up to 10 times more likely to develop glaucoma”. “It is still essential to see a doctor for any sleep issues,” added Dr Pahwa, further stressing that routine examination an eye special is important “as sight threatening damage caused glaucoma can be prevented its early detection and timely treatment”.
Stressing the need for ophthalmologic screening, Dr Rajat Goyal, Consultant Ophthalmolog, Ujala Cygnus Rainbow Hospital, Agra urged people to keep away from depression and anxiety through regular exercise and yoga “as these disorders go hand-in-hand with insomnia, which may increase internal eye pressure”.
How to prevent/reduce the risk?
The only way to reduce the risk is to control sleep apnea. Since sleep apnea is majorly associated with high body mass index, losing weight is the first and most important step towards controlling it, said Dr Jha.
“However, if someone is diagnosed with having sleep apnea, it is difficult to control weight unless treatment is not started. Also, maintaining sleep hygiene is of paramount importance in controlling sleep apnea. Make sure to control your sinus symptom, if any. Your sleep timing should be more or less fixed,” Dr Jha said, as she shared some remedies:
*Try to maintain a gap of at least two hours from your last meal to bed time.*No caffeinated drinks at least four hours before bed. No screen time two hours before bed*Avoid protein supplements two hours before bed
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