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What Is The Optimal Sleep Duration To Prevent Heart Disease?
 

Sleep, as defined by merriam-webster.com, is the natural periodic suspension of consciousness during which the powers of the body are restored. Countless studies also confirmed that sleep is critical for good health. Yet, surveys had also found that more people are sleeping less than 6 hours a night and at least 75 percent of people had encountered sleep difficulties at least a few nights a week.

While one should not worry too much about an occasional insomnia, he or she should really concern if there is chronic sleep loss, which could lead to many health problems including weight gain, hypertension (high blood pressure), and even a decline in the immune system.

On the other hand, previous studies also cautioned people that too much sleep might not be good for the health. So, is there an optimal sleep duration that is good for us? Perhaps, the findings of a recent study could provide the answer.

In a paper published on April 2, 2010 in the journal 'Sleep', researchers from West Virginia University's (WVU) faculty of medicine reported that people who sleep more or less than 7 hours a day, including naps, are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease.

To find out the relationship between sleep duration and coronary heart disease, the researchers analyzed data from 30,397 adults who participated in the 2005 National Health Interview Survey.

Besides supplying information on demographic factors, socioeconomic characteristics, lifestyle and health, the participants had to answer the question: “how many hours of sleep they had on average in a 24-hour period?”

After adjusting for age, sex, race, whether the person smoked or drank, whether they were fat or slim, and whether they were active or sedentary, the researchers found that nearly 2,146 participants had cardiovascular disease, classified as cases of angina, coronary heart disease, heart attack or stroke. Among these people, 8 percent had about 5 hours or less sleep on any given day and 9 percent had more than 9 hours of sleep. Even excluding participants with diabetes, hypertension or depression, the risk of cardiac problems still persisted for those who slept 5 hours or less and 9 hours or more.

Participants who slept 9 hours or longer a day were one-and-a-half times more likely than 7-hour sleepers to develop cardiovascular disease. Participants, who aged below 60 years old and slept 5 hours or less a night, fell into the most at-risk group. Their risk of developing cardiovascular disease was more than threefold compared with people who sleep 7 hours.

Women who got 5 hours or less a day, including naps were more the 2-and-a-half times more likely to develop cardiovascular disease. Insufficient sleep duration was associated with angina, and sleeping too much and too little was associated with heart attack and stroke.

The researchers admitted that they had yet to determine the causal relationship between sleep duration and cardiovascular disease. However, they explained that how long a person sleeps does affect endocrine and metabolic functions, and insufficient sleep could probably cause impaired glucose tolerance, reduced insulin sensitivity and higher blood pressure, and all these can increase the risk of hardening the arteries.

Doctors should pay attention to the changes in sleep duration when assessing a patient’s risk for cardiovascular disease, and that the public health initiatives should consider including some measures to improve sleep quality and quantity, as suggested by the researchers,

By now, a question will probably pop up in most people’s mind: “How to get an exact 7-hour of sleep?” This seems to be an impossible task for many of us!

While awaiting new research to find out the exact link between sleep duration and heart disease, people should at least follow the recommendation by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine: have about 7 to 8 hours every night!

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