A new study found that regular bedtime is more important than the length of time one spends asleep, according to a report published by the “Website” website.Health“Specialized in health news and reports.
Many studies and research confirm that not getting enough sleep leads to health problems such as heart and kidney disease, high blood pressure, and depression.
However, a regular sleep routine may have a deeper impact on health, as research published in the journal “Sleep” found that a person’s risk of death can be better predicted by regular habits of going to bed, compared to the number of hours of sleep.
The sleep study focused on data from 61,000 participants in the United Kingdom, with an average age of about 63 years, noting that more than half of them were women, and more than 97 percent of them were white.
Participants who had more consistent sleep schedules had a lower risk of all-cause mortality, as well as deaths from cancer and cardiovascular disease.
“Making your wake-up time consistent seems to be the key message,” Sarah Nowakowski, MD, assistant professor of medicine and behavioral sleep medicine provider at Baylor College of Medicine at the University of Houston in Texas, told Health.
Novakowski explained that for one week, the researchers tracked the participants’ activity via a graph, which allowed for an estimation of the time each person slept with their daily wake-up time, taking into account nap times, periods of interrupted sleep, and periods when people were awake in the middle of the night. .
Nowakowski said this allowed insight into the “daily variation” in people’s sleep.
The Actigraphy data was used to determine each person’s ‘sleep regularity index’, which describes how consistent a person’s sleep is on a scale from zero to 100, the latter representing completely regular sleep.
Actigraphy is a non-invasive technology that measures physical activity levels for research conducted for various reasons, via a motion sensor similar to a wristwatch, which can be worn for long periods of time.
Comparing participants’ mortality data, researchers found that people who scored at least 71.6 on the sleep regularity index had a 20 to 48 percent lower risk of all-cause mortality.
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The risk of death from cancer in this group also decreased by between 16 percent and 39 percent, and the risk of death from cardiovascular disease decreased by 22 percent.
This is not the only recent study that emphasizes the importance of regular sleep habits. A study published this month in the journal JAMA Network Open tracked sleep in elderly participants. The researchers found that frequent and irregular sleep for fewer hours is linked to cognitive decline.
It is important to emphasize that the two new studies found a relationship – without knowing the reasons – between regular sleep and improved health outcomes, said pulmonary critical care and sleep medicine specialist Richard Castriota.
Therefore, it is not clear whether irregular sleep causes a higher risk of death or cognitive decline, or whether these health problems worsen people’s sleep problems.
But overall, the two studies suggest that regulating sleep can have a good impact on people’s health.
Why is regularity important so much?
Novakowski answers that emerging research links sleep to circadian rhythms, explaining: “Everything in our bodies runs on a 24-hour basis… our appetite, our hormones, our peak performance, our sleep.”
Circadian rhythms are affected by light and darkness, as well as genetics and routine habits. When a person’s sleep cycles are out of sync with his environment and the body’s internal clock, this may lead to health problems.
Castriota explained that experiencing jet lag after traveling is a good example to illustrate this, adding: “It is not only that you feel tired, but that your digestive system is not working properly, you feel pain in your muscles, and everything is out of control.” Because some parts of your body work in one time zone, while other parts work in another time zone.”
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Previous research has found that this disruption of circadian rhythm, especially in people who work shift work, can lead to autoimmune disorders.
Castriota also explained that blood pressure typically drops at night when a person sleeps, and if that is continually disrupted, people may see a greater risk of heart attack, stroke, kidney disease, and diabetes.
He added that there is also a relationship between interrupted sleep and high levels of cortisol (the stress hormone secreted by the adrenal glands, which is important for helping the body deal with stressful situations) and heart and brain stress.
More research on circadian rhythms and sleep is necessary, but it’s undeniable that going to bed and waking up at the same time every day seems to benefit overall health.
Coming up with a consistent sleep-wake schedule is the first thing experts recommend if people want to improve their sleep. Here Castriota says: “Set a time to sleep… regardless of whether it is on the weekend or a weekday, and whether you have work or vacation, try to wake up at the same time every day.”
On top of the specific time to wake up, people should plan to get about 7 or 8 hours of sleep and arrange their daily schedule accordingly.
To make it easier, people should take time to get quiet and comfortable, said Castriota, who stressed “avoid watching TV, cell phone, computer and other screens (before bed).”
He added: “It may also be helpful to take a warm bath before bed, and avoid any stimulants (such as caffeine).”
Other beneficial healthy sleep habits include exercising during the day, and keeping the bedroom dark, cool, and quiet.
2023-12-30 07:30:12
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