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New York: Are you getting the right amount of sleep every night? You may be at risk of stroke if your sleep duration is less than seven hours or more than eight hours per night.


A study conducted by researchers from the New York University found that getting the right amount of sleep and exercising several times a week can significantly can reduce the risk of stroke.


Researchers also found that sleeping for a longer or shorter amount of time can increase the risk people would suffer.


According to the study, individuals who have an average sleep of seven to eight hours and vigorous leisurely activity or exercise of 30 to 60 minutes three to six times per week can significantly decrease their stroke risk.


The result showed that average sleepers -- those who slept seven to eight hours a night -- were 25 percent less likely to have experienced a stroke.


Meanwhile long sleepers -- those who got more than eight hours a night -- were 146 percent more likely to have suffered a stroke.


And short sleepers, who slept less than seven hours a night, were 22 percent more likely to report having had a stroke.


To come to this conclusion, researchers used a computerised analysis of health, lifestyle, demographic and other factors in 288,888 adults who were 77 percent white and nearly half 45 or older who participated in a survey from 2004 to 2013.


They examined how long, average and short sleep durations and physical activity, such as walking, swimming, bicycling, gardening and more, impact stroke risk.


The research was presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2016 held in US.


(With IANS inputs)