Sleep Deprivation Associated With Higher Mortality Risk In Hypertensive Patients And Diabetics

The benefits of sleep have not been explored less in any way. Unfortunately, many people miss out on the amount of zzz they are supposed to catch. Experts suggest sleeping no less or more than 7 to 9 hours a day. Unfortunately, workload and home chores often leave people with fewer hours of rest than they should get.

The immediate effects of sleep deprivation are evident with you feeling groggy and fatigued with a bad mood. Studies also show that poor sleep has detrimental effects on your health in the long run. It can lead to obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. In fact, it also ups the risk of early mortality.

Now a new study has found that diabetics and hypertensive individuals have higher odds of death from stroke or heart disease if they sleep less than 6 hours nightly. Both heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of death worldwide.

What Did This Study Reveal?

Researchers involved in this study assessed the data of 1654 adults. Of these, 52.5% were women in the age bracket of 20 to 74. Scientists divided participants into two group. The first group’s participants had stage 2 hypertension or type 2 diabetes. Those who were in the second group had been diagnosed or followed a treatment for heart disease or stroke.

Scientists had data about the sleep duration of participants and also all death records. They found those who have hypertension or type 2 diabetes were at higher risk of death due to heart disease and stroke when they slept for only 6 hours or even less.

Those who slept less had a 2x higher risk than those who slept for 6 hours or more. Furthermore, participants in the second group who slept for 6 hours or less had about a 3x higher risk of death from cancer. The Journal of American Heart Association published this study.

What Did The Researchers Say?

Scientists said that sleep plays a protective role in those who have hypertension or type 2 diabetes. However, science needs to dive deeper to learn if improving sleep through various therapies can reduce this risk of death. Researchers also emphasized on the need for better treatment approaches for those who had sleep-related issues.

Lead author, Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, Ph.D. said, “Short sleep duration should be included as a useful risk factor to predict the long term outcomes of people with these health conditions and as a target of primary and specialized clinical practices.”

Previous Research On Sleep Deprivation’s Health Effects

A 2017 study found that lack of sleep can lead to stress, pain, anxiety and depression in the short-term. In the long-term, regular sleep loss can cause hypertension, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic syndrome.

And these are the impacts that are on healthy individuals so those who have medical conditions, their health can worsen with lack of sleep. Keeping all this in view, it is crucial to take healthy steps to improve your sleep. Having a proper schedule and good sleep hygiene can help in this regard.