Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

A new study done by the Binghamton University in New York claims that people living in areas which are situated at higher latitudes- where one does not get much sunlight- are at a higher risk of developing obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD).

Meredith Coles, Professor of Psychology at Binghamton University said, “The results of this project are exciting because they provide additional evidence for a new way of thinking about OCD. Specifically, they show that living in areas with more sunlight is related to lower rates of OCD.”

For their study, the research team went through a lot of previously published papers that talked about OCD and its prevalence percentage in certain areas and also recorded the latitudes of each area.

Most people who suffered from the disorder reported that they were able to sleep quite later than they wanted to. Often they had to sleep in late to compensate for the lost sleep- which gave a delayed sleep-wake pattern to their lifestyle. This might negatively affect the symptoms of the disorder.

“This delayed sleep-wake pattern may reduce exposure to morning light, thereby potentially contributing to a misalignment between our internal biology and the external light-dark cycle,” explained Coles. “People who live in areas with less sunlight may have less opportunities to synchronize their circadian clock, leading to increased OCD symptoms.”

This incorrect alignment is more common at higher latitudes- where one is not exposed to little sunlight- which puts the people living in these areas at a higher risk of developing OCD, and in some cases could also lead to the worsening of the disorder. These areas also have higher lifetime prevalence rates of OCD than compared to places which are situated lower latitudes.

The research team says that it may be too soon to start talking about specific treatments for this problem, but further studies would be done to develop and test new treatment methods that will try to tend to sleep and circadian rhythm disruptions.

“First, we are looking at relations between sleep timing and OCD symptoms repeatedly over time in order to begin to think about causal relationships,” added Coles. “Second, we are measuring circadian rhythms directly by measuring levels of melatonin and having people wear watches that track their activity and rest periods. Finally, we are conducting research to better understand how sleep timing and OCD are related.”

The team hopes that further studies- which will study the affect of exposure to morning light- will help scientists to develop a new treatment method.

By Purnima

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