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We realize that sleeping well keeps us healthy, that waking up refreshed enhances daily quality of life, and promotes overall well-being.
Now, researchers at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) say that about 8 percent of deaths from any cause could be attributed to poor sleep patterns. They presented their findings at the ACC’s Annual Scientific Session/World Congress of Cardiology.
“We saw a clear dose-response relationship, so the more beneficial factors someone has in terms of having higher quality of sleep, they also have a stepwise lowering of all cause and cardiovascular mortality,” said co-author Frank Qian, MD. “I think these findings emphasize that just getting enough hours of sleep isn’t sufficient. You really have to have restful sleep and not have much trouble falling and staying asleep.”
Qian and his team included data from 172,321 people (average age 50 and 54 percent women) who participated in the National Health Interview Survey between 2013 and 2018, performed annually by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Center for Health Statistics to help gauge the health of the U.S. population and includes questions about sleep and sleep habits.
Qian said this is the first study to his knowledge to use a nationally representative population to look at how several sleep behaviors, and not just sleep duration, might influence life expectancy.
Because researchers were able to link participants to the National Death Index records (through December 31, 2019), they could examine the association between individual and combined sleep factors and all-cause and cause-specific mortality.
Participants were followed for a median of 4.3 years during which time 8,681 individuals died. Of these deaths, 2,610 (30 percent) were from cardiovascular disease, 2,052 (24 percent) were from cancer and 4,019 (46 percent) were due to other causes.
Researchers assessed five factors of quality sleep using a low-risk sleep score they created based on answers collected as part of the survey: 1) ideal sleep duration of seven to eight hours a night; 2) difficulty falling asleep no more than two times a week; 3) trouble staying asleep no more than two times a week; 4) not using any sleep medication; and 5) feeling well rested after waking up at least five days a week. Each factor was assigned zero or one point for each, for a maximum of five points, which indicated the highest quality sleep.
“If people have all these ideal sleep behaviors, they are more likely to live longer,” said Dr. Qian. “So, if we can improve sleep overall, and identifying sleep disorders is especially important, we may be able to prevent some of this premature mortality.”
Compared to individuals who had zero to one favorable sleep factors, those who had all five were 30 percent less likely to die for any reason, 21 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular disease, 19 percent less likely to die from cancer, and 40 percent less likely to die of causes other than heart disease or cancer.
Among men and women who reported having all five quality sleep measures (a score of five), life expectancy was 4.7 years greater for men and 2.4 years greater for women compared with those who had none or only one of the five favorable elements of low-risk sleep. More research is needed to determine why men with all five low-risk sleep factors had double the increase in life expectancy compared with women who had the same quality sleep.
“Even from a young age, if people can develop these good sleep habits of getting enough sleep, making sure they are sleeping without too many distractions and have good sleep hygiene overall, it can greatly benefit their overall long-term health,” Qian said, adding that for the present analysis they estimated gains in life expectancy starting at age 30, but the model can be used to predict gains at older ages too. “It’s important for younger people to understand that a lot of health behaviors are cumulative over time. Just like we like to say, ‘it’s never too late to exercise or stop smoking,’ it’s also never too early. And we should be talking about and assessing sleep more often.”
We realize that sleeping well keeps us healthy, that waking up refreshed enhances daily quality of life, and promotes overall well-being.
Now, researchers at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) say that about 8 percent of deaths from any cause could be attributed to poor sleep patterns. They presented their findings at the ACC’s Annual Scientific Session/World Congress of Cardiology.
“We saw a clear dose-response relationship, so the more beneficial factors someone has in terms of having higher quality of sleep, they also have a stepwise lowering of all cause and cardiovascular mortality,” said co-author Frank Qian, MD. “I think these findings emphasize that just getting enough hours of sleep isn’t sufficient. You really have to have restful sleep and not have much trouble falling and staying asleep.”
Qian and his team included data from 172,321 people (average age 50 and 54 percent women) who participated in the National Health Interview Survey between 2013 and 2018, performed annually by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Center for Health Statistics to help gauge the health of the U.S. population and includes questions about sleep and sleep habits.
Qian said this is the first study to his knowledge to use a nationally representative population to look at how several sleep behaviors, and not just sleep duration, might influence life expectancy.
Because researchers were able to link participants to the National Death Index records (through December 31, 2019), they could examine the association between individual and combined sleep factors and all-cause and cause-specific mortality.
Participants were followed for a median of 4.3 years during which time 8,681 individuals died. Of these deaths, 2,610 (30 percent) were from cardiovascular disease, 2,052 (24 percent) were from cancer and 4,019 (46 percent) were due to other causes.
Researchers assessed five factors of quality sleep using a low-risk sleep score they created based on answers collected as part of the survey: 1) ideal sleep duration of seven to eight hours a night; 2) difficulty falling asleep no more than two times a week; 3) trouble staying asleep no more than two times a week; 4) not using any sleep medication; and 5) feeling well rested after waking up at least five days a week. Each factor was assigned zero or one point for each, for a maximum of five points, which indicated the highest quality sleep.
“If people have all these ideal sleep behaviors, they are more likely to live longer,” said Dr. Qian. “So, if we can improve sleep overall, and identifying sleep disorders is especially important, we may be able to prevent some of this premature mortality.”
Compared to individuals who had zero to one favorable sleep factors, those who had all five were 30 percent less likely to die for any reason, 21 percent less likely to die from cardiovascular disease, 19 percent less likely to die from cancer, and 40 percent less likely to die of causes other than heart disease or cancer.
Among men and women who reported having all five quality sleep measures (a score of five), life expectancy was 4.7 years greater for men and 2.4 years greater for women compared with those who had none or only one of the five favorable elements of low-risk sleep. More research is needed to determine why men with all five low-risk sleep factors had double the increase in life expectancy compared with women who had the same quality sleep.
“Even from a young age, if people can develop these good sleep habits of getting enough sleep, making sure they are sleeping without too many distractions and have good sleep hygiene overall, it can greatly benefit their overall long-term health,” Qian said, adding that for the present analysis they estimated gains in life expectancy starting at age 30, but the model can be used to predict gains at older ages too. “It’s important for younger people to understand that a lot of health behaviors are cumulative over time. Just like we like to say, ‘it’s never too late to exercise or stop smoking,’ it’s also never too early. And we should be talking about and assessing sleep more often.”
