Have you ever been caught sneaking a -- usually unhealthy --
midnight snack? Probably. Did you know that eating that snack
probably was not the wisest move? Probably. Did you remember eating
it and feel guilty about it in the morning? Probably. Did you do
the same thing the following night? Probably not. You are Squidward.
Imagine if you
were unconsciously sneaking midnight snacks on a
daily basis, and I don't mean "guilty pleasures like chips or cookies.
I mean sandwiches filled with sugar, soap, or dog food. Those
diagnosed with Nocturnal Sleep-Related Eating Disorder experience bizarre,
sometimes nightly, eating binges characterized by the unconscious consumption
of comfort food. According to the scholarly article "Zolpidem
Induced Nocturnal Sleep-Related Eating Disorder (NSRED) in a Male
Patient," written by Amit Dang, Gaurav Garg, and Padmanabh V.
Rataboli, a man being treated for short-term insomnia presented with NSRED.
His symptoms manifested in his ability to safely exit his home, walk to
his own nearby store, and single-handedly unlock the door -- all without any signs of awareness of these
actions. Soon thereafter, his family discovered him consuming candy in
the store almost 2 km away from their home.
How is this possible?
For his insomnia, the man’s healthcare provider prescribed
Zolpidem tartrate, a short-acting hypnotic (often used to treat insomnia
characterized by difficulty in falling asleep, i.e. long SOL, or sleep onset
latency). A well-intentioned directional
choice for his care regardless of such side-effects, the patient was in fact
diagnosed with drug-induced NSRED.
How can he be helped?
As a result of the guilt, sadness, and embarrassment that fills
NSRED patients when loved ones or friends inform them of their habits and
behavior, such patients often experience depression. A common treatment for depression then is the
use of SSRI drugs: drugs that extend the activity of “happy”, “feel-good”
neurotransmitters in neuron communication via the synapse…a welcome correlation,
SSRIs are beneficial to NSRED patients too.
Other clinical treatments include anticonvulsant drug therapy, stress
management, gastric bypass surgery, counseling, and removal of caffeine/
alcohol from patients’ diets.
Honestly, I found this information to be both appalling and
disturbing. It seems almost as if
Nocturnal Sleep-Related Eating Disorder cannot be a real condition. I am impressed to know that someone can exit
his/ her house, walk or drive to another location, and make and consume food –
safely – all without any knowledge of doing so.
It is a dangerous ability to carry.
Thankfully, I am not an insomniac and sleep pretty well on a nightly
basis. I cannot imagine having exhausting
sleep problems, just to receive information that a drug like Zolpidem tartrate
is my only hope for improvement. I cannot imagine the reality of the picture indicated above.
I am intrigued by the NSRED phenomenon and will more seek literature
about it. I also would like to see more correlative
studies between depression treatments and NSRED treatments. I see it as a potential chicken-egg dilemma…does
NSRED cause the need for depression-treating drugs or does the treatment of depression
require medication like Zolpidem tartrate to combat its negative manifestations?
Which came first, the chicken or the egg?
In response to which comes first, I reason that depression could come first leading to oversleeping and increased REM sleep. If a patient is prescribed SSRI's or other ADM's, then their REM sleep would decrease. However, this might also cause an increase in NREM sleep thus leading to an higher likelihood of sleepwalking or perhaps sleep eating.
ReplyDeleteI can also see how sleep eating could cause depression though as weight gain could contribute to ruminations about weight and other depressive thoughts.