Not getting enough sleep can do more than make you hit snooze - it might also put you at greater risk for heart attacks.
The study,
published in the Archives Of Internal Medicine, found that adults who already had high blood pressure were at a greater risk of heart disease and stroke when they skimped on the shut-eye.
The researchers looked at 1, 255 Japanese adults who had hypertension and were, on average, 70 years of age. Those who slept for less than 7.5 hours each night were more likely to suffer adverse effects.
The men and women were studied over a four-year period and during that time, there were 99 heart attacks, strokes or deaths from cardiac arrest.
That's because a normal night of slumber allows your blood pressure to slow down and those who were "short sleepers" were at a higher risk.
A relatively small number of people are both short sleepers and have no overnight decline in blood pressure, note the researchers, led by Dr. Kazuo Eguchi of Jichi Medical University in Japan. Therefore, "it is a group that could be easily identified and monitored more closely."
But the combination of short sleep and non-dipping blood pressure conferred the highest risk: a more than four-fold greater chance of heart attack, stroke or cardiac death
Eguchi's team recommended that doctors caring for patients with high blood pressure should ask them about their sleep habits.
With files from Reuters.
Read the full study here.
Tips For A Better Night's Sleep:
- Fix a bedtime and an awakening time
- Avoid napping during the day
- Avoid alcohol 4-6 hours before bedtime
- Avoid caffeine 4-6 hours before bedtime
- Use comfortable bedding
- Exercise regularly, but not right before bed
- Use comfortable bedding
Information courtesy:
University of Maryland Medical Centre