
Poor sleeping habits are linked to a higher risk of death in people with metabolic syndrome
STATES CHRONICLE – A new research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association suggests sleeping less than six hours at night may be linked to the development of heart disease. The risk of death from cardiovascular causes is higher in people suffering from metabolic syndrome, which is a combination of obesity, high blood pressure, and diabetes.
Poor sleep and metabolic disease are a deadly combination
The study warns people exposed to more cardiovascular risks to get enough sleep. If they rest for less than six hours, their risk of dying from a stroke or heart attack is double than that of people with a lower blood pressure or with a quicker glucose metabolism. If they spend enough time sleeping, the risk diminishes visibly.
This research is different from others on the subject, as it does not question participants on their sleep habits. Scientists selected 1,344 people with an average age of 49 and asked them to spend one night in a laboratory. There, they measured their sleep duration and how it influences the risk of death according to their cardiovascular history.
The risk gets higher if a person doesn’t get enough rest
Around 39.2 percent of the participants had at least one risk factor of the three present in the metabolic syndrome, together with high cholesterol and triglycerides. They were supervised for a period of 16.6 years, during which 22 percent of the participants died.
People with risk factors were more likely to die of heart disease that those without risks even if they slept for more than six hours, namely the risk was 1.49 times bigger. However, if they suffer from sleep deprivation, the risk gets 2.1 times bigger.
Therefore, researchers advise people who suffer from such problems to seek medical help to improve their sleep patterns. Even though the study was merely observation, there is a clear link between poor rest and cardiovascular deaths, so people should take this issue into consideration.
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