To Your Health
August, 2018 (Vol. 12, Issue 08) |
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Too Much Sleep Isn't Healthy, Either
By Editorial Staff
We've run countless articles in
To Your Health over the years on the health perils of poor / inadequate sleep. But what could be wrong with
too much sleep? According to research, a whole lot when it comes to your health. People who sleep too much – defined by a study in the
Journal of the American Heart Association as more than 10 hours a day – are more likely to die from a stroke or heart disease compared with people who sleep eight hours daily.
This research review involved 74 studies and 3 million total study participants. Sleeping for more than 10 hours per day was associated with a 56 percent higher risk of dying from a stroke and a 49 percent higher risk of dying from cardiovascular disease compared with eight-hour-a-night sleepers.
Overall, excessive sleepers were 30 percent more likely to die prematurely compared to regular sleepers. In fact, even study participants who regularly slept more than eight hours a night (but less than 10) had a moderate increased risk of premature death compared to people who regularly achieved the recommended 7-8 hours of nightly sleep.
The moral to the story: Sleep is critical to your health, and too much – just like too little – can be a bad thing! Talk to your doctor about sleep wellness and the various factors that can influence the quality of your sleep.
