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Dysbiosis in Snoring Children: An Interlink to Comorbidities?
Maria Carmen Collado1,2, Maija Kristiina Katila3,4, Nina Maria Vuorela5
1Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology, National Research Council (IATA-CSIC), Valencia, Spain.
Insights
Child snoring is linked to altered gut microbiota composition and reduced microbial diversity. These findings suggest early gut microbial patterns may be a target for addressing long-term health issues associated with snoring.
Area of Science:
- Microbiome research
- Pediatric health
- Sleep science
Background:
- Early microbial colonization influences infant health via nutritional, immunological, and metabolic programming.
- Childhood snoring is multifactorial and can lead to long-term health problems.
- The relationship between snoring and gut microbiota in children is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To characterize the connection between gut microbiota and snoring in children.
- To investigate differences in gut microbial composition between snoring and non-snoring children.
Main Methods:
- Prospective, observational CHILD-SLEEP birth cohort study.
- Gut microbiota profiling of 43 children at 2 years of age using 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon sequencing.
Main Results:
- Snorers exhibited higher abundance of Proteobacteria, Enterobacteriaceae, and Erysipelotrichaceae.
- A higher Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratio was observed in snorers.
- Significantly lower microbial diversity and richness were found in children who snore.
Conclusions:
- Children who snore have distinct gut microbiota compared to healthy children.
- These gut microbial differences may have long-term health implications.
- Early gut microbiota could represent a novel therapeutic target for snoring-related conditions.
Background And Objectives:
Early microbial colonization has a key impact on infant health through nutritional, immunological, and metabolic programming. The origin of child snoring is multifactorial and complex, and may thereby also generate long-term health problems. The link between child snoring and gut microbes remains unclear, although indirect evidence exists regarding this relationship. This study aimed to characterize the connection between gut microbiota and child snoring.
Methods:
In a prospective, observational CHILD-SLEEP birth cohort study, gut microbiota in a subcohort of 43 of these children at 2 years of life was profiled with 16S ribosomal RNA gene amplicon sequencing.
Results:
A higher abundance of the Proteobacteria phylum, the Enterobacteriaceae family, and Erysipelotrichaceae family, as well as a higher ratio of Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes were detected in snorers as compared to controls. Furthermore, snorers showed significantly lower microbial diversity and richness than non-snorers.
Conclusions:
The snoring children manifest different gut microbiota as compared with healthy children. Considering that snoring and sleep disorders can be a source of long-term consequences, including cardiovascular, metabolic, immunological, neurocognitive and behavioral consequences, our results proposes early microbiota as a new treatment target.
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