I would not say that I am an insomniac, but I do have a hard time sleeping through the night!
To be honest I cannot remember the last time I had a good soundless night’s sleep.
Whether it is my neck playing up, or certain things on my mind, or just unable to fall asleep, there is always something. But to be honest I don’t feel tired during the day either!
We know that sleep is essential for a healthy heart. And that people who don’t sleep enough are at higher risk for cardiovascular disease-regardless of age, weight, smoking and exercise habits. But what I did not know is that those who slept really well were at risk too!
So getting too much sleep may increase a person’s risk of heart disease, according to a new study from South Korea.
Men and women in the study who snoozed for nine or more hours per night had more calcium in their arterial walls and stiffer arteries – two factors that put them at risk for heart disease, than those who slept seven hours a night.
“Inadequate sleep is associated with an increased risk of heart attack and stroke,” says Dr Chan-Won Kim, an associate professor at Kangbuk Samsung Hospital in South Korea and one of the lead authors of the study.
“But it’s possible that other factors, such as depression or obesity, also contributed to the risk.”
Another study that examined data from 3,000 adults over the age of 45 found that those who slept fewer than six hours per night were about twice as likely to have a stroke or heart attack as people who slept six to eight hours per night.
It’s not clear why less sleep is detrimental to heart health, but researchers understand that sleeping too little causes disruptions in underlying health conditions and biological processes like glucose metabolism, blood pressure, and inflammation.
One of the reasons we know how vital sleep is to the heart is that patients with sleep apnea (which causes them to wake frequently throughout the night) often have compromised heart health.
This is because without long, deep periods of rest, certain chemicals are activated that keep the body from achieving extended periods in which heart rate and blood pressure are lowered.
Another recent research has shown that too little sleep earlier in life could take its toll as well.
For example, in one study, adolescents who didn’t sleep well were at greater risk for developing cardiovascular problems. Those teenagers had higher cholesterol levels, a higher body mass index and an increased risk of hypertension.
In the South Korean study, the researchers looked at more than 47,000 young and middle-age adults who reported how long and how well they slept.
For about 29,000 of the participants, the researchers looked at data from health screening tests on the amount of calcium in the arteries.
For the other 18,000 participants, the researchers looked at data on how stiff the arteries were.
The study showed a “U-shaped curve” between sleep duration and these early signs of heart disease.
“But sleep needs can vary from person to person,” says Dr Kim.
“Some people might feel well rested with just six hours of sleep, as opposed to the standard recommended seven hours.”
Experts warn that women are at higher risk because they are more prone to insomnia. A large-scale study of over 160,000 people found a clear association between sleep problems and the debilitating effects of a heart attack or stroke.
Difficulty getting off to sleep, staying asleep and waking up not feeling refreshed increased the risks by 27 per cent, 11pc, and 18pc respectively.
“It could be that there really is an optimal amount of sleep and when people veer away from that, their health is affected,” says Dr Susan Redline, a professor of sleep medicine at Harvard Medical School in Boston.
Sleep plays a significant role in healing and repairing the heart and blood vessels. It also gives the immune system and the cardiovascular system a rest and allows other organs to be restored.
I know that people should have a sleep routine with regular bed-time and waking times and make sure they get as much fresh air and natural daylight as possible, but let’s be honest that is very difficult to maintain!
I have to say I do envy my husband. He is one of the lucky ones that as soon as the head hits the pillow he is asleep!
“Sleep is not a trivial issue,” says World Health Organisation Professor Valery Gafarov.
My husband totally agrees with you there professor Gafarov!