According to a recent article in Parkinson’s News Today, researchers at the UCSF Weill Institute discovered that disturbances in circadian rhythm increased a person’s risk of Parkinson’s disease threefold.

Circadian rhythm, or our internal clock, controls the sleep cycle. Sleep irregularities are common non-motor symptoms in Parkinson’s disease. Older people, especially people with neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s, are known to have these sleep disruptions.

About Parkinson’s Disease

The National Institute of Health describes Parkinson’s Disease as a progressive nervous system disorder affecting several areas of the brain.

Tremors, which usually occur when the body is relaxed, are one of the first symptoms of the disease.

About the study

The new study, part of a larger Osteoporotic Men’s study, involved 2930 older men (average 76.3 years) who did not have Parkinson’s disease.

The health status of the participants was evaluated at the onset of the study and monitored on a regular basis.

From February through August 2019, investigators analyzed eleven-year follow-up data from the original study.

The study participants wore an actigraph watch device that monitored cycles of activity and rest.

The parameters studied were rhythm strength (amplitude), average activity (mesor), how quickly rhythms moved on a twenty-four-hour curve (robustness), and the measurement of delay or advance of the twenty-four hour-cycle (acrophase).

They determined that the risk of Parkinson’s had increased significantly as circadian quality decreased. Results showed that seventy-eight participants (2.7%) developed Parkinson at various times during the study.

According to the study, older men are at risk of developing Parkinson’s disease as the result of irregular circadian rhythm compared to others with normal rest and activity cycles.

The researchers surmised that the disturbances in the body’s internal clock might be an early signal that the disease has taken hold well before the actual Parkinson’s diagnosis. Findings were reported in the journal JAMA Neurology.

The researchers analyzed the association between the circadian rhythm factors that were captured by the actigraph and the risk of Parkinson’s later on in life.

Investigators made adjustments to data that included sleep disturbances, sleep apnea, and restless legs, but these changes did not affect their final calculations.

The researchers also made adjustments to data by excluding participants who received a Parkinson diagnosis within two years of the onset of the study. Again, these adjustments did not alter their findings.

Results showed that reduced amplitude and rhythm robustness have a greater effect on the risk of Parkinson than disrupted timing.

The researchers suggest that further studies are needed to determine if circadian disruption by itself contributes to Parkinson’s development. If this becomes evident it will open up new avenues to manage or even prevent Parkinson’s disease.