Sleeping more on weekends can reduce heart disease risk

Ready to hit the snooze button and sleep for longer this weekend? You just might be doing your heart a favor.

The hustle and bustle of our daily lives can often lead to a disruption in our sleep patterns. You’re not alone if you find yourself perpetually sleep-deprived due to demanding work or school schedules.

But here’s the silver lining – you could decrease your risk of heart disease by simply “catching up” on sleep during weekends. A new study reveals that a good weekend snooze could be tied to a 20% reduction in heart disease risk.

Weekend sleep to the rescue

“Sufficient compensatory sleep is linked to a lower risk of heart disease,” said Yanjun Song, a co-author of the study from the State Key Laboratory of Infectious Disease at Fuwai Hospital in China.

“The association becomes even more pronounced among individuals who regularly experience inadequate sleep on weekdays.”

It is common knowledge that those who miss out on sleep during the week tend to “sleep in” on their off days to make up for it. However, the impact of compensatory sleep on heart health has not been extensively studied.

Heart health benefits of weekend sleep

The researchers analyzed data from 90,903 subjects involved in the UK Biobank project. The objective? To decipher the relationship between compensated weekend sleep and heart disease.

Sleep data was meticulously recorded using accelerometers and neatly grouped into quartiles (from most compensated sleep to least).

Q1 had the least compensated sleep, ranging from -16.05 hours to -0.26 hours. (Yes, it is possible to have negative sleep hours). Q2 ranged from -0.26 to +0.45 hours. Q3 stood at +0.45 to +1.28 hours, and Q4 had the most compensatory sleep, from 1.28 to 16.06 hours.

Approximately 21.8% of participants self-reported as being sleep-deprived, which meant they slept less than the recommended 7 hours per night.

The rest of the cohort could have sporadic inadequate sleeping hours too, but their average daily sleep didn’t meet the criteria for sleep deprivation.

Reducing the risk of heart disease

How, then, was heart disease diagnosis arrived at? Hospitalization records and cause of death registry information were used to diagnose various heart conditions, including ischaemic heart disease (IHD), heart failure (HF), atrial fibrillation (AF), and stroke.

Based on almost 14 years of follow-ups, the study revealed that individuals with the most compensatory weekend sleep (quartile 4) were 19% less likely to develop heart disease than those with the least (quartile 1).

Furthermore, among those with daily sleep deprivation, the ones who caught up on sleep most had a 20% lower risk of developing heart disease than those with the least compensatory sleep. Interestingly, the study found no gender differences in these associations.

Improving sleep quantity and quality

The findings on weekend sleep spark an important conversation about sleep hygiene, especially in our busy lives. By making uninterrupted and sufficient rest a priority during the workweek, we can greatly improve our heart health.

Simple strategies like sticking to a regular bedtime, creating a cozy sleep environment, and cutting down on screen time before bed can make a real difference in how well we sleep.

Even small changes can lead to better sleep quality and quantity. By understanding just how vital sleep is, we can take charge of our health and adopt habits that help us recover from the effects of not getting enough rest.

Catch-up sleep on the weekend

“Our results show that for the significant proportion of the population in modern society that suffers from sleep deprivation, those who have the most ‘catch-up’ sleep at weekends have significantly lower rates of heart disease than those with the least,” noted Zechen Liu, another key contributor to the study.

So, guess what? The next time you choose to catch up on sleep over the weekend, remember, you’re not just beating fatigue – you could be outsmarting heart disease too.

The findings of the research will be presented in the session ‘Exploring cardiovascular health: lifestyle, economics, and disparities’ at ESC – Online Congress Platform.

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