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Sleep less to live long, says study
Sleeping longer -- eight hours or more a night -- could shorten your life, according to a study of the nighttime habits of more than a million Americans released on Thursday.
Sleeping longer -- eight hours or more a night -- could shorten your life, according to a study of the nighttime habits of more than a million Americans released on Thursday.
Researchers from the University of California at San Diego found in a study of adults aged 30 to 102 that people who slept eight hours a night were 12 per cent more likely to die within the study`s six-year period compared to those sleeping seven hours. The increased risk rose to 15 per cent for participants reporting more than eight hours or less than 4-1/2.
"People who sleep five, six or seven hours have nothing to worry about. There is no evidence that people need eight hours of sleep ... The only basis for that is it`s what grandma used to say," Dr. Daniel Kripke, a UCSD professor of psychiatry and the study`s lead author, said in an interview.
He said the study shows that longer sleep is a risk factor for cancer as well as heart disease and stroke, but more research is needed to determine whether sleeping longer should be added to the growing list of one-time pleasures -- like smoking and alcohol -- now deemed hazardous to your health.
Other researchers also cautioned against strict interpretation of the findings. "Many studies show that if people don`t get adequate sleep they are very sleepy during the day. Their ability to perform tasks is impaired, the risk of accident is higher and people are crabby," said James Walsh, a sleep scientist and president of the National Sleep Foundation. He also said the San Diego study was not a true random sampling of the population and more studies are needed.
Kripke, an eight-hour-a-night sleeper, said the average American gets 6-1/2 hours of shut-eye, which is just fine. "Neither in terms of health or survival is there any evidence that eight hours of sleep is better than six or seven. Nor is there any evidence that longer sleepers are rich or have more fun," he added.
Walsh said the weight of evidence still suggests that the average adult needs 7-1/2 to 8-1/2 hours of sleep to be wide awake, energetic and alert during the day.
Researchers from the University of California at San Diego found in a study of adults aged 30 to 102 that people who slept eight hours a night were 12 per cent more likely to die within the study`s six-year period compared to those sleeping seven hours. The increased risk rose to 15 per cent for participants reporting more than eight hours or less than 4-1/2.
"People who sleep five, six or seven hours have nothing to worry about. There is no evidence that people need eight hours of sleep ... The only basis for that is it`s what grandma used to say," Dr. Daniel Kripke, a UCSD professor of psychiatry and the study`s lead author, said in an interview.
He said the study shows that longer sleep is a risk factor for cancer as well as heart disease and stroke, but more research is needed to determine whether sleeping longer should be added to the growing list of one-time pleasures -- like smoking and alcohol -- now deemed hazardous to your health.
Other researchers also cautioned against strict interpretation of the findings. "Many studies show that if people don`t get adequate sleep they are very sleepy during the day. Their ability to perform tasks is impaired, the risk of accident is higher and people are crabby," said James Walsh, a sleep scientist and president of the National Sleep Foundation. He also said the San Diego study was not a true random sampling of the population and more studies are needed.
Kripke, an eight-hour-a-night sleeper, said the average American gets 6-1/2 hours of shut-eye, which is just fine. "Neither in terms of health or survival is there any evidence that eight hours of sleep is better than six or seven. Nor is there any evidence that longer sleepers are rich or have more fun," he added.
Walsh said the weight of evidence still suggests that the average adult needs 7-1/2 to 8-1/2 hours of sleep to be wide awake, energetic and alert during the day.
Bureau Report