Sleep is good for your heart

Adequate sleep is one of the rules for preventing cardiovascular disease. People who sleep for less than six hours run on average 15 percent more risk of cardiovascular disease than those who get enough sleep. A healthy lifestyle remains the best way of preventing cardiovascular disease. The combination of a healthy diet, sufficient exercise, moderate alcohol consumption and no smoking cuts the risk of going down with risk of dying of it by 67 percent. These percentages go up when people also get enough sleep: they then run 65 percent less risk of a heart attack or stroke and 83 percent less risk of death from these causes. These findings emerge from the analysis of three studies of 20.000 Dutch adults done by Wageningen University, part of Wageningen UR, together with the National Institute for Pubic Health and the Environment RIVM. Researcher Marieke Hoevenaar-Blom received her PhD for this study in March. In the analysis, enough sleep comes out as seven to eight hours sleep per night. However, the risk of heart problems or a stroke among people who wake up rested and refreshed even after a shorter night is comparable to that of the good sleepers. People whose nights are short and whose sleep is disturbed are doubly disadvantaged. The study sugest that this group has a 65 percent higher risk of cardiovascular disease. No evidence was found for a higher risk among long sleepers ?people who sleep more the nine hours a night; a finding which did come out of earlier, similar studies. A Mediterranean diet is even more important for preventing cardiovascular disease than previously believed, the study suggests. This link is underestimated in many studies, accordingly to the researchers. And exercise only helps if it is fairly intensive. A gently walk or a little bit of gardening are not enough to make a difference. More information: daan.kromhout@wur.nl Sources Wageningen World nr. 2 2013 The picture is by desenchufandolaluna.blogspot.com