Lack Of Sleep Could Cause Mental Health Problems - Researchers

Mental health problems including psychotic experiences could in part be down to a lack of sleep, researchers have revealed.
A new study found that people who had undertaken a course of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) designed specifically to treat insomnia not only found their sleep improved, but also experienced reduced paranoia and fewer hallucinations - both psychotic experiences - as well as improvements in depression and anxiety.
“The dominant view is that sleep [problems are] either a symptom of several mental health problems or it is a secondary consequence,” said Daniel Freeman, co-author of the research from the University of Oxford. “Really, sleep is one of the contributing causes.”
Writing in the journal Lancet Psychiatry, a team of researchers from institutions across the UK describe how they examined the link between sleep and mental health using online surveys to quiz students from 26 universities up and down the country. Individuals were invited to take part in the study if they were found to have insomnia after answering a web-based questionnaire
In total more than 3,700 students signed up to the study, with participants randomly split between two groups – those who were offered an online course of six 20-minute sessions of CBT directed at tackling insomnia, and those who received no treatment. Both groups undertook online assessments at the start of the study and after three weeks, 10 weeks and 22 weeks.
The results reveal improvements in both sleep and mental health were greater for members of the CBT group.After taking into account effects not linked to treatment – as deduced from the no-treatment group – insomnia in the CBT group was found to have fallen by almost half 10 weeks into the study, while both anxiety and depression dropped by a fifth, and paranoia and hallucinations fell by 25% and 30% respectively.
“Having insomnia doubles your chances of developing depression and we now know that if you treat the insomnia it reduces depression,” said Freeman.
While symptoms of mania increased among those in the sleep treatment group, the team say that could actually reflect increased wellbeing, since assessments for mania probe factors such as cheerfulness and self-confidence.
However the authors admit that the drop out rate was high at about 50%, with just 18% of those in the treatment group accessing all six CBT sessions. But, they add, a number of different scenarios were considered for those who quit the study, including that their mental health issues continued to change in line with those who remained in the study, or that they became worse, with all scenarios giving rise to the same conclusions.
“It is very clear that even despite there being a lot of drop-out, you can still see the pattern emerge,” said Freeman, adding that the study also underlined the link between sleep and mental health was two-way, with psychotic experiences affecting sleep - albeit to a smaller degree.
While most participants did not have clinically diagnosed mental health disorders, the team say they believe insomnia is also likely to be a contributing factor for severe psychological problems.
“The realistic view of mental health problems is that there is a spectrum of severity and all the evidence we have is that the causes and the treatments are similar across the spectrum,” said Freeman.
The upshot, he says, is that insomnia-focused CBT programmes could do much more than help individuals sleep.
“There is good news here: [insomnia] is something that can be treated, and not only does the distressing sleep problem itself improve, but there are knock-on benefits to a number of areas of your psychological health,” said Freeman, adding that with little social stigma attached to insomnia, focusing on sleep problems could offer young people a way in to discussing mental health problems.

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Ian Hamilton, a lecturer in mental health at York University who was not involved in the study, cautioned that the research relied on self-selection of participants and self-reporting in the assessments – both of which could have affected the results - and was carried out only in students.
But, he added, the research offered hope. “The important message from this research is that there is a real opportunity to help young people with insomnia and reduce their chances of developing psychotic experiences,” he said. “The challenge will be for mental health workers and services who may routinely ask [individuals] about sleep but are not usually equipped or skilled in tackling sleep issues.”
Nicole Tang, an expert in insomnia and CBT from the University of Warwick and who was not involved in the research, described the study as important. “Considering that more students than ever suffer from ill mental health, findings of this study suggest that investment in providing sleep-related interventions is a logical and possibly cost-effective way to tackle this growing problem among our young people,” she said.

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Sweet Potato: The Super Food

Anselm Adodo, fronline natural health practitional in Lagos, writes on the healing powers of potato. 
I like to describe sweet potatoes as the underrated super food in Nigeria and Africa.
I spend a lot of my time giving dietary instructions and recommendations to sick people.
The prevalence of cancer in our society is especially alarming and sad. Even more unfortunate is the uncaring attitude of our government to this menace of cancer.
As I keep telling all those who care to listen, each of us need to take charge of our health care and look after our health. Money is not the most important factor in staying healthy. The most important factor is knowledge. I mean health knowledge, not just health information.
For example, many people know that smoking is bad for their health, but that does not stop them from smoking.
A medical doctor may know that excessive drinking of alcohol is bad for health, yet that may not stop him from drinking. Such a doctor can be said to be rich in health information, but poor in health knowledge.
The reason why people eat poor diet is not always because they lack money. Rather, it is because they lack knowledge. Rich people often spend their money to buy food that will kill them! In fact, nature is so kind that the most nourishing and health sustaining foods are cheap and easy to grow. One of them is the sweet potato, which is the subject of our discussion today.
Sweet potato is one of the high calorie starch foods. It contains no saturated fats or cholesterol, and is rich source of dietary fibre, anti-oxidants, vitamins, and minerals than Irish potatoes.
Sweet potato’s calorie content mainly comes from starch, a complex carbohydrate. This is a very vital information for diabetics. I have heard many diabetic patients say that they do not eat sweet potato because it is sweet and may raise their sugar levels. Nothing could be further from the truth. Sweet potato has higher amylose to the amylopectin ratio than that in Irish or white potatoes.
Amylose raises the blood sugar levels rather slowly on comparison to simple fruit sugars (fructose, glucose etc.) and therefore, it is recommended as a healthy food item even in diabetes.
As a nutrition expert, I have recommended sweet potato for thousands of diabetic patients with positive results. Sweet potatoes do not cause blood sugar spikes. Sweet potatoes are naturally sweet-tasting but their natural sugars are slowly released into the bloodstream, helping to ensure a balanced and regular source of energy, without the blood sugar spikes linked to fatigue and weight gain.


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Prostrate Screening Raises Hope For Cancer Cure

As part of the strategy to reduce rising deaths from prostate cancers, researchers said using a controversial blood test to screen all men for prostate cancer could cut deaths from the disease by 20 per cent.
According to the revelations of a new study published in the ‘Annals of Internal Medicine’, the prostate-specific antigen (PSA) screening would save a ‘significant’ number of lives.
These followed the work of a team of American scientists who re-examined two major studies which had formerly been taken to contradict each other as to the benefits of population-wide screening, using the PSA test.
Prostate cancer affects the prostate gland, the gland that produces some of the fluid in semen and plays a role in urine control in men.
The prostate gland is located below the bladder and in front of the rectum.
According to medical experts, prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men of black origin but it is also treatable if found in the early stages.
In 2017, the American Cancer Society (ACS) predicts that there would be around 161,360 new diagnoses of prostate cancer in the United States (U.S), and that around 26,730 fatalities will occur because of it.
On its part, Nigeria records about 100,000 new cases of cancers including cancers of the prostate, colon, breast, cervix, among others.
However, among Nigerian men, prostate cancer is very common, with majority of those suffering the condition presenting at a very late stage when medical personnel cannot do much to save the lives of affected men.
However, the new analysis found that the two studies, involving thousands of patients, concurred that PSA screening would save a ‘significant’ number of lives.
According to media reports, although, the PSA tests were not completely reliable and can suggest prostate cancer when no cancer exists, they can also yield false negative results because up to 15 per cent of men with the disease have normal PSA levels.
“In addition, many cases of prostate cancer progress extremely slowly, meaning early diagnosis can unnecessarily worry men into opting for treatment with profound side-effects.
Karen Stalbow, Head of Policy, Knowledge and Impact at Prostate Cancer UK said: “Early diagnosis of prostate cancer is vital to saving men’s lives.”

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Breastfeeding Cuts The Risk Of Painful Menstruation

Scientists have affirmed that breastfeeding reduces the risk of endometriosis by up to 40 per cent. According to the findings of a study published in ‘The British Medical Journal’ (BMJ), breastfeeding for a total of three or more years across a women’s life reduces her risk of developing endometriosis by nearly 40 per cent.
About 70 per cent of people with endometriosis experience painful menstruation while nearly half of them have chronic pelvic pain. Similarly, in endometriosis, pain during sex is also common and infertility occurs in up to half of women affected.
Endometriosis is a condition in which the layer of tissue that normally covers the inside of the uterus, grows outside it, most often this is on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, and tissue around the uterus and ovaries and in rare cases, also occur in other parts of the body. According to the study, for every three additional months a woman breastfeeds, per pregnancy, her risk of getting endometriosis is lowered by eight per cent, while exclusively feeding naturally decreases the chance of a diagnosis by 14 per cent.

This is thought to be due to hormonal changes that occur during breastfeeding as women temporarily stop having periods. Natural feeding also alters the release of certain hormones, such as oxytocin and estrogen, which may determine a woman’s risk of the disorder.
The researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, United States (U.S) analysed 72,394 women, who had one or more pregnancy that lasted at least six months. The study’s participants were followed for more than 20 years.
During that time, 3,296 of the participants were diagnosed with endometriosis after their first pregnancy. Results revealed the risk of endometriosis reduces by eight per cent for every additional three months a woman spends breastfeeding per pregnancy.
For those who exclusively breastfeed, the risk is lowered by 14 per cent, the study shows. Although, endometriosis is a common condition among Nigerian women, many who suffer it miss out on early diagnosis, therefore exposing them to painful menstrual pain and infertility for several years.

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Nigerian Natural Health Online Nominated For 2017 Health Fitness Awards/Vote

Dear esteemed reader. We are proud to announce to you that your darling blog, Nigeria Natural Health Online (Africa's foremost blog on natural health) has been nominated for the 2017 Health Fitness Awards. We owe this honour to your commitments to our ever enriching and insightful blog posts on Natural Health.

We would also like you to vote for us so that we can collectively bring this award home. Voting is easy. Just look up at the top right sidebar of this page and follow the link. scan through the various nominees until you come to our logo with our blog name kimekwu.blogspot.com at the top and KIMEKWU at the bottom.

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Thank you for this wonderful partnership.

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Junk Food In Pregnancy Could Lead To Anxiety, Depression In Kids

Scientists have raised the alarm over negative impact of some food on unborn kids, saying fatty diet during pregnancy impairs the brain in the development of children.These findings were published in the journal, ‘Frontiers in Endocrinology’. Research found that high fat diet lowers serotonin levels, resulting in mood disorders. Biochemically derived from tryptophan, serotonin is primarily found in the gastrointestinal tract (GI tract), blood platelets, and the central nervous system (CNS) of animals, including humans.it is popularly thought to be a contributor to feelings of well-being and happiness. The researchers found that mothers who eat a high fat diet while pregnant are more likely to have children with mental health problems.

They grouped a total of 65 female Japanese macaques into two groups, one given a high-fat diet and one a control diet during pregnancy.
They then measured the behaviour among their 135 offspring and found that both males and females exposed to a high-fat diet during pregnancy showed higher levels of anxiety compared with those in the control group.

The researchers said this was caused by an impaired development of the central serotonin system in their brains. Lower serotonin levels can result in mood disorders and also affect appetite, digestion, memory, sleep and even sexual arousal.

Given the high level of dietary fat consumption and maternal obesity in developed nations, these findings have important implications for the mental health of future generations, the researchers reported.

In Nigeria, healthy eating during pregnancy is critical to the growth and development of the unborn baby.

During antenatal clinics, pregnant mothers seeking care are often advised to get necessary nutrients that their bodies require and that means eating from a variety of food groups, including fruits and vegetables, breads and grains, protein sources and dairy products. The consumption of these combination result in balanced diet. Despite the recommendation, some pregnant mothers still turn to junk food either as a result of habit  and ignorance, which may result to fatty diet.
However, in the new study, the team from Oregon Health and Science University tested the effect of a high-fat diet on pregnant primates.The researchers said this was caused by an impaired development of the central serotonin system in their brains. Lower serotonin levels can result in mood disorders and also affect appetite, digestion, memory, sleep and even sexual arousal.

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