Inconsistent bedtimes, irregular sleep patterns could cause more than two-fold risk of developing cardiovascular disease.
![Irregular Sleep May Raise the Risk of Cardiovascular Events Irregular Sleep May Raise the Risk of Cardiovascular Events](https://images.medindia.net/health-images/1200_1000/Losing-Sleep.jpg)
‘Healthy sleep isn't just about quantity but also about variability which can have an important effect on heart health.’
Read More..
![pinterest](https://images.medindia.net/icons/news/social/pinterest.png)
"Even when we talk about sleep, we tend to focus on duration -- how many hours a person sleeps each night -- but not on sleep irregularity and the impact of going to bed at different times or sleeping different amounts from night to night. Our study indicates that healthy sleep isn't just about quantity but also about variability, and that this can have an important effect on heart health." Read More..
![twitter](https://images.medindia.net/icons/news/social/twitter.png)
![facebook](https://images.medindia.net/icons/news/social/facebook.png)
![whatsapp](https://images.medindia.net/icons/news/social/whatsapp.png)
![linkedin](https://images.medindia.net/icons/news/social/linkedin.png)
![pinterest](https://images.medindia.net/icons/news/social/pinterest.png)
Huang and colleagues examined data from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis (MESA), a federally funded, prospective study that included 1,992 participants who did not have cardiovascular disease at the beginning of the study.
MESA consisted of a diverse study population made up of white (38 percent), African American (28 percent), Hispanic (22 percent) and Chinese American (12 percent) participants, aged 45-84 years, from six field centers across the U.S. Participants wore an activity tracker on their wrist for seven days that recorded their sleep, including bedtime, sleep duration and wake time.
They were then followed for an average of 4.9 years. During that time, 111 participants experienced cardiovascular events, including heart attack, stroke and other adverse events.
The investigators divided participants into four groups ranging from those with the most irregular sleep patterns (two hours or more difference in sleep duration each night) and those with the most regular sleep patterns (less than an hour difference in sleep duration each night).
Advertisement
The researchers estimate that for every 1,000 people following the most regular sleep pattern, only eight would have a cardiovascular event over one year; for every 1,000 people with the most irregular sleep patterns, 20 people would likely develop a cardiovascular event over one year.
Advertisement
If larger studies confirm these findings in the future, Huang would like to evaluate whether an intervention -- such as, sleeping longer or more regularly -- could decrease a person's risk.
"Sleep regularity is a modifiable behavior. In the future, we'd like to explore whether changing one's sleep patterns by going to bed consistently each night may reduce a person's risk of future cardiovascular events," said Huang.
Source-Eurekalert