September 26, 2007
Heart Disease and Sleep
Do you get enough sleep every night? Do you get too much sleep every night?
Research Links Heart Disease and Sleep Time
Researchers warned recently (September 2007) that those who don’t get enough sleep might nearly double the risk of death from heart disease. Actually, they warned that you nearly double risks of death by heart disease if you cut sleep in order to maintain a nearly 24/7 schedule.
The long-term study, done by researchers at the University of Warwick and University College London, found that people who reduced their normal sleeping pattern from seven to five hours a night as part of a “too-busy” lifestyle nearly doubled their risk of fatal heart disease. Specifically, the study showed a 1.7 times overall mortality risk and a two times heart disease mortality risk.
Researchers in the study examined sleeping patterns of 10,308 British civil servants. The sleeping patterns were based on data taken in 1985-88 and again in 1992, for those still alive. Participants’ ages, sex, and health status were included. After studying the sleeping patterns, researchers studied how changed sleeping patterns affected mortality 11-17 years later. They also made adjustments for smoking status and other illnesses.
Those who gradually increased their sleep to eight hours or more also seemed to have a two times mortality risk compared to those who had not changed their habits. These, however, were not as likely to die from heart disease.
Lead researcher, Francesco Cappuccio, indicated that there was a scientific link between too little sleep, WEIGHT gain, high Blood Pressure, and type two diabetes. Although not scientific, there seemed also to be a link between too much sleep, depression, cancer-related fatigue, and poverty leading to mortality.
Sleep to Prevent Heart Disease
The main consideration in this study, from this author’s viewpoint, appears to be that the number of hours of sleep is not as critical as changes in sleep patterns. If you are one who has always awakened after seven hours, and you continue to maintain that sleep pattern, the study seems not to apply. Likewise, if you have always, consistently slept more than seven hours, that appears to be your body’s normal need.
Those who drastically cut sleep in order to work more and still have time to play as much as desired, are disrupting the body’s natural sleep pattern. Those who force themselves to sleep less out of fear of risks will also disrupt normal sleep patterns.
CAUTION: The information presented here is for educational purposes only. If you have questions about sleep and heart disease, please seek professional medical advice.
Filed under 02-Heart Disease Causes by Administrator
Comments on Heart Disease and Sleep »
Heart disease and sleep may have some correlation, but unless there is an explanation on molecular level, it is hard to confirm it.
Recently in our laboratory, we have solved the structure of LDL (low density lipoprotein) to the resolution of 12-15 Angstorm using Cryo electron microscopic technique. We have also achieved its main protein’s apob-100 consensus folding. We have also observed the variation in LDL structure that leads to its accumulation in blood plasma. The variations are mainly dependent upon size and quality of lipids, which inturn is also affected by food habits and living habits. People with busy life dont spent some of the harmones made using cholesterol and mostly spend time in sedentry works. However people with normal life, properly exaust their cholesterol derived harmones, like testosterone, vitamin D etc.
It is also a matter of blood circulation difference (between sleep and awake) which also governs the quanitity of LDL in blood.
Overall we found that misfolding of apoB-100 is the direct reason for not being taken by fibroblast tissues, but other factors do have role in affecting it.
Overall there is a need of combination of moelcular level obsevation and statistical observation to derive more information from the structure we obtained.
What worries me the most about all the recent and past studies is, I doubt that every single person is the same. I know 75 year olds that have worked hard their whole life and ran on 5 hours of sleep and I know 75 year olds who’ve been lazy their whole life and still love to sleep. In both groups there are healthy people and in both groups there are unhealthy people.
I’d assume that trying to stay rested, exercising regularly and eating right all leads to the best quality of life for each individual BUT the “quality of life” has more to do with genetics than anything else.
Great post and certainly made me think about going to be early:)