Disturbed Circadian Rhythm, Junk Food Linked to Inflammation

A disturbed circadian rhythm combined with high-fat and sugar diet can lead to inflammation, a new study says.

Chronic inflammation is associated with several health complications like heart disease and diabetes. The study shows that night shift workers - doctors, nurses, fire-fighters - have high risk of developing certain diseases.

"Circadian rhythm, which imposes a 24-hour cycle on our bodies, is different from sleep pattern," said Robin M. Voigt, PhD., assistant professor at the Rush Medical College and first author of the study."

"Sleep is a consequence of circadian rhythms," Voigt said in a news release.

Researchers recommend people with occupations that disrupt the circadian rhythm to be extra-vigilant about their health. Eating a healthy diet, keeping a strict sleep-wake cycle and maintaining gut health might help the body cope with adverse effects of a broken circadian rhythm.

According to researchers, changes in bacteria type living in the intestines are linked to inflammation. Another research has shown that certain bacteria in the guts can increase weight gain risk and that increasing fiber intake leads to growth of "good" gut microbes.

The current study was based on male mice models. Researchers changed mice's exposure to light- dark on a weekly basis. The change in light-dark patterns leads to disruption of circadian rhythm. These mice were made to follow different kinds of diets with some getting more high-fat food than others.

The team found that the microbes in the guts of test rodents (the ones that had specialized diets and disturbed biological clock) were different from germs in the control group. However, this shift in microbiome was seen only when they were fed high-fat diets.

Mice on high-sugar and fat diet also had bacteria that are associated with chronic inflammation.

"Looking forward, we would like to functionally evaluate how circadian rhythm disruption may influence diseases including colon cancer, which may in part be the consequence of altered intestinal microbiota," Voigt concluded.

The study is published in the journal PLOS One.