Blood Test for Sleeping Well?

What if you could take a simple blood test and determine if your teenager was sleeping well? We're not there yet but emerging evidence suggests some day we will be able to monitor our sleep via markers in our blood. These markers are called microRNAs. They are small molecules that help turn on or turn off our DNA. They are known as DNA regulators for this reason.

A recently published study found the expression of specific circulating mircoRNAs are “positively associated with total sleep duration in healthy, normal-weight children and adolescents.” (Read more: https://www.healio.com/primary-care/sleep-medicine/news/online/%7Bd1dace52-5b6b-454e-8fc7-03becfeb14e7%7D/blood-test-may-determine-if-kids-are-sleeping-enough)

"Our findings show for the first time that sleep duration reflects the profile of specific circulating microRNAs in school-aged children and adolescents. It is conceivable that epigenetic modifications, mainly related to circadian rhythm control, may be modulated or interfere with sleep duration." (Full Abstract: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31916337-circulating-mirnas-are-associated-with-sleep-duration-in-childrenadolescents-results-of-the-ifamily-study/?from_term=fabio+lauria&from_sort=date&from_pos=1)

MicroRNA blood tests could also help diagnosis obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and the effectiveness of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) some day. "A cluster of miRNAs was identified to differentiate between non-OSA and OSA patients. CPAP treatment was associated with changes in the circulating miRNA profile." Full Abstract: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31530881-circulating-microrna-profile-as-a-potential-biomarker-for-obstructive-sleep-apnea-diagnosis/?from_term=microrna+sleep&from_sort=date&from_pos=7