Your body fights cancer while you sleep. But only if you actually sleep. Pulling all-nighters or working late nights might be the symbol of productivity in our society, but it may be harming your body more than you think.
Sleep deprivation and cancer risk
On June 17, Dr Arrjun Sankaran, a surgical oncologist based in Hyderabad, described what happens when you don’t sleep proper hours or pull all-nighters. He wrote in the caption of his post, “Did you know that you have a higher risk of cancer if you do a lot of late-night phone scrolling, don’t sleep too well at night, or are a night shift worker?”
The oncologist underlined that every night, our brain releases melatonin – a hormone that repairs damaged DNA, controls abnormal cell growth, and reduces cancer-driving hormones like oestrogen.
However, the catch is that melatonin is only made in darkness. So, that one hour of scrolling before bed is not just affecting your sleep, it’s also switching off your body’s cancer-defence system.
Dr Sankaran highlighted that even the WHO classifies night shift work as a probable carcinogen, not because of the work itself, but because disrupted sleep over the years disrupts melatonin levels. “The WHO or IRC classifies night shift work as a Group 2A carcinogen, which means that it is just less than the risk associated with a cigarette or alcohol,” he noted.
But this is not about one late night. This is about what chronic sleep deprivation does silently, over time, because sleep is one of the most powerful cancer-prevention tools you have — and it’s completely free.
How does chronic sleep affect your body?
According to the oncologist, there is a significantly higher risk of breast, colorectal, and prostate cancer in those who don’t maintain a healthy sleep schedule. He listed three reasons why this happens:
1. You are messing with your circadian rhythm, which means you are also messing with your body’s natural repair systems.
2. The golden hormone melatonin: It is this ‘beautiful thing’ that gets to work at night, cleaning up all the errors your body might have accumulated throughout the day and making sure new DNA mutations don’t occur.
3. A lot of night shift work and less exposure to the sun in the morning, and also, there is less production of vitamin D in our bodies.
So, what can you do? Here are a few steps Dr Sankaran suggests:
1. Turn off all your screens at least an hour before you go to sleep.
2. Use blackout or dark curtains to ensure there is absolute darkness. You can also use a sleep mask.
3. If you have kids at home who need the light turned on when they go to sleep, make sure you get them used to red or amber light.
4. No phone use for at least 15 minutes before you go to sleep. Even better if you can try to keep your phone out of your bedroom.
In the end, he cautioned, “Try to stick to a regular sleep schedule because your circadian rhythm depends on it. Make sure you prioritise your sleep like your life depends on it, because quite literally it does.”
Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.
This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.
