Exercise for Fibromyalgia: Beneficial, But...

Fibromyalgia sufferers experience chronic pain, limited ability to do physical activities, and often have poor sleep. The relationships, however, are unclear. A study in the Journal of Sleep Research looked at the times at which patient physical activity occurred. Activity levels were recorded using actigraphy, a noninvasive means of continually measuring gross motor activity. After 14 days, 160 adults with fibromyalgia (94% female) had the following results:

• Both afternoon and early evening activity was independently associated with
  • Lower sleep efficiency
  • Lower total sleep time
  • Longer wake time after sleep onset
• In those who self-reported higher pain intensity, both afternoon and early evening physical activity brought about stronger associations of lower sleep efficiency

Further study is needed, as the study cohort was small, type of activity was undefined, and concurrent use of medication was unknown.

 

Access the journal article.

Other Categories:

• sleep disorders

• women's health