A recent study revealed that there are two simple behaviors that may contribute to reducing the probability of developing amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), which is one of the serious neurodegenerative diseases for which no cure has been discovered yet.
“Multiple sclerosis” is a devastating disease that gradually destroys nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord, eventually leading to loss of the ability to move and then difficulty breathing. Death usually occurs within two to five years after diagnosis.
Despite years of scientific research, scientists have not been able to pinpoint a definitive cause of the disease, but it is believed to be caused by a complex interaction between genetic and environmental factors, as well as age and lifestyle.
However, a preliminary study, which will be presented at the 78th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Neurology in April, suggests that waking up early and being physically active may be associated with a reduced risk of developing the disease.
The study included about 500,000 people, and scientists compared people who prefer to sleep and wake up early, known as morning people, with people who are more active and productive at night.
The scientists followed the participants, whose average age was 57, for 14 years, during which time 675 people, or 0.14% of the sample, developed the disease.
The study relied on questionnaires that participants initially filled out about sleep habits and levels of physical activity. Then the scientists classified the participants according to their sleep schedule into morning or evening, without specifying precise hours for each style.
The results showed that people who were most productive early in the day were 20% less likely to develop amyotrophic lateral sclerosis than night owls.
It was also shown that physical activity plays an important role, as the risk of infection decreased by 26% among the most physically active people compared to the least active.
The protective effect associated with early waking remained even after accounting for factors such as age, gender, and body mass index. The results also showed that sleeping between six and eight hours a night is associated with a lower risk of infection compared to sleeping for shorter or longer periods.
To measure physical activity, researchers used “metabolic equivalent units (METs),” which compare the amount of energy expended during activity to the amount expended at rest. The average physical activity among participants was 2645 minutes of metabolic equivalent per week.
The data showed that 386 people out of 314,170 who practiced high physical activity (600 equivalent minutes or more per week) developed the disease, compared to 107 people out of 70,946 among the least active, which strengthens the association between physical activity and a 26% lower risk of infection after adjusting for various health factors.
