Sleep Issues Linked to Increased Risk of Heart Disease

Previous studies have found that insufficient or poor sleep may increase the risk of heart disease. Now a new study suggests that having multiple sleep health issues in midlife may increase the risk of heart disease by up to 141%.

Participants in the study included 6,820 adults with an average age of 53 who took part in the Midlife in the United States study. All participants completed self-reported sleep questionnaires that evaluated regularity, satisfaction, alertness during waking hours, timing of sleep, sleep efficiency and sleep duration. In addition, 633 participants wore wrist devices that captured sleep activity for 7 days. Participants also provided heart disease history.

The researchers found that participants who had one sleep health issue had a 54% increased risk of heart disease. Participants with multiple sleep health issues had a 141% increased risk of heart disease.

The study was conducted by researchers from the University of South Florida. It was published online ahead of print on February 7, 2022 in the journal Scientific Reports.

A previous study found that going to sleep between 10 and 11pm may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.