According to recent studies being presented at the World Congress of Cardiology and the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session, getting enough sleep can improve your heart and overall health, and possibly even how long you live. According to the study, young people who had a proper night’s sleep better had a somewhat lower risk of dying young. Furthermore, the statistics imply that irregular sleep habits may account for around 8% of deaths from any cause. “We saw a clear dose-response relationship, so the more positive factors someone has in terms of having higher sleep quality, they also have a stepwise lowering of all cause and cardiovascular mortality,” said Frank Qian, MD, a clinical fellow in medicine at Harvard Medical School and a resident physician in internal medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. He is also a co-author of the study. “These results, in my opinion, highlight the fact that merely getting enough sleep is insufficient. You must sleep soundly and have little difficulty getting and staying asleep. “Data from 172,321 persons (average age 50 and 54% women) who took part in the National Health Interview Survey between 2013 and 2018 were included in Qian and team’s research. The National Center for Health Statistics and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conduct a survey every year that includes inquiries about sleep and sleeping patterns in an effort to assess the health of the American populace. According to Qian, this is the first study that he is aware of that examined how different sleep behaviors—instead of just sleep duration—might affect life expectancy.
The majority of survey participants—about two thirds—identified as White, 14.5% Hispanic, 12.6% Black, and 5.5% Asian. Researchers were able to analyze the relationship between individual and combined sleep variables and overall and cause-specific mortality because participants could be linked to the National Death Index records (until December 31, 2019). Following the participants for a median of 4.3 years, 8,681 people passed away during that time. 2,610 of these deaths (or 30%) were caused by cardiovascular disease, 2,052 (or 24%) by cancer, and 4,019 (or 46%) by other causes. Using a low-risk sleep score they developed based on information gathered as part of the survey, the researchers evaluated distinct aspects of high-quality sleep. They included: 1) getting the recommended seven to eight hours of sleep each night; 2) only having trouble falling asleep twice a week; 3) only having trouble staying asleep twice a week; 4) not taking any sleep aids; and 5) feeling rested after waking up at least five days a week. Each element was given a score of zero or one points, with a maximum of five points signifying the best possible sleep. People are more likely to live longer if they exhibit all of these ideal sleeping habits, according to Qian. “Thus, we may be able to prevent some of this premature death if we can enhance sleep generally, and detecting sleep problems is very crucial.”
Other potential risk factors for death, such as lower socioeconomic level, smoking and alcohol use, and other medical disorders, were adjusted for in the analysis. Those who had all five favorable sleep factors were 30% less likely to die for any reason, 21% less likely to die from cardiovascular disease, 19% less likely to die from cancer, and 40% less likely to die from causes other than heart disease or cancer than those who had zero to one favorable sleep factor. These additional fatalities, according to Qian, are probably the result of mishaps, infections, or neurological conditions like dementia and Parkinson’s disease, but more research is required. Life expectancy was 4.7 years longer for males and 2.4 years longer for women among those who reported getting all five indicators of high-quality sleep (a score of five) compared to those who had none or just one of the five beneficial components of low-risk sleep. To understand why men with all five low-risk sleep variables had a double-fold gain in life expectancy compared to women who slept as well, more research is required. According to Qian, “Even from a young age, if people can develop these good sleep habits of getting enough sleep, making sure they are sleeping without too many distractions, and having good sleep hygiene overall, it can greatly benefit their overall long-term health.” He added that for the present analysis, they estimated gains in life expectancy starting at age 30, but the model can be used to predict gains at older ages as well. “It’s crucial that younger people comprehend how many healthy actions add up over time. It’s never too early to start exercising or giving up smoking, just as we like to say. And we ought to evaluate and discuss sleep more frequently.”
The researchers anticipate that patients and clinicians will start discussing sleep as part of their overall health evaluation and illness management plans because these sleep patterns are simple to inquire about during clinical visits. The study’s self-reporting of sleep habits without any objective measurement or verification is one of its limitations. Moreover, there was no information provided regarding the kinds of medications or sleep aids utilized, their frequency of use, or their duration of use. Further studies are required to learn how these increases in life expectancy might continue as people age and to further investigate the observed sex differences. Both too little and too much sleep had been found in the past to be harmful to the heart. It has also been extensively reported that sleep apnea, a condition that causes breathing to cease or stop while a person is asleep, can cause heart attacks, excessive blood pressure, and atrial fibrillation.
Conclusion
A restful night’s sleep can increase mood, vitality, memory, and weight loss. These things are great, but sleeping is much more than these minor improvements. Sleeping an adequate amount each night ensures that your body is getting the rest it needs to function the next day.
