Relationship Between Circadian Strain, Light Exposure, and Body Mass Index in Rural and Urban Quilombola Communities

Débora Barroggi Constantino, Nicoli Bertuol Xavier, Rosa Levandovski, Till Roenneberg, Maria Paz Hidalgo, Luísa K Pilz, Débora Barroggi Constantino, Nicoli Bertuol Xavier, Rosa Levandovski, Till Roenneberg, Maria Paz Hidalgo, Luísa K Pilz

Abstract

Industrialization has greatly changed human lifestyle; work and leisure activities have been moved indoors, and artificial light has been used to illuminate the night. As cyclic environmental cues such as light and feeding become weak and/or irregular, endogenous circadian systems are increasingly being disrupted. These disruptions are associated with metabolic dysfunction, possibly contributing to increased rates of overweight and obesity worldwide. Here, we aimed to investigate how activity-rest rhythms, patterns of light exposure, and levels of urbanization may be associated with body mass index (BMI) in a sample of rural and urban Quilombola communities in southern Brazil. These are characterized as remaining social groups who resisted the slavery regime that prevailed in Brazil. Quilombola communities were classified into five groups according to their stage of urbanization: from rural areas with no access to electricity to highly urbanized communities. We collected anthropometric data to calculate BMI, which was categorized as follows: from ≥ 18.5 kg/m2 to < 25 kg/m2 = normal weight; from ≥ 25 kg/m2 to < 30 kg/m2 = overweight; and ≥ 30 kg/m2 = obese. Subjects were asked about their sleep routines and light exposure on workdays and work-free days using the Munich Chronotype Questionnaire (N = 244 included). In addition, we analyzed actimetry data from 121 participants with seven consecutive days of recordings. Living in more urbanized areas and higher intradaily variability (IV) of activity-rest rhythms were associated with an increased risk of belonging to the overweight or obese group, when controlling for age and sex. These findings are consistent with preclinical data and point to potential strategies in obesity prevention and promotion of healthy metabolic profiles.

Keywords: actimetry; chronobiology; intradaily variability; levels of urbanization; obesity; relative amplitude; rest-activity rhythms.

Conflict of interest statement

TR is the founder and CSO at Chronosulting UG. None of his consulting activities in this context had any relationship with the current study. The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.

Copyright © 2022 Constantino, Xavier, Levandovski, Roenneberg, Hidalgo and Pilz.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Flowchart of the participants recruitment and selection process. White squares represent final sample size.
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Mean activity (A) and light (B) profiles of each group. The means (bold line) and standard error (shadow) are presented for the normal-weight group (orange), overweight group (light blue), and obese group (dark blue).
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
Activity IS (A), activity IV (C), light IS (B), and light IV (D) in normal-weight, overweight, and obese groups. Analyses were performed using the Kruskal–Wallis test followed by Dunn’s test. IS, Interdaily stability; IV, intradaily variability; p-values according to Dunn’s test for multiple comparisons, adjusted with Sidak method.
FIGURE 4
FIGURE 4
Activity M10 (A), activity L5 (C), activity RA (E), light M10 (B), light L5 (D), and light RA (F) in normal-weight, overweight, and obese groups. Analyses were performed using the Kruskal–Wallis test followed by Dunn’s test. M10: mean activity or light exposure of the 10 consecutive hours with the highest values of a daily profile; L5: average activity or light exposure of the 5 consecutive hours with the lowest values of a daily profile; RA, relative amplitude; p-values according to Dunn’s test for multiple comparisons, adjusted with Sidak method.

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