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Sleeping longer on weekends actually helps to prevent world’s biggest killer, study says
A recent study found that sleeping longer on weekends can actually help to prevent the world’s biggest killer – cardiovascular disease.
We are constantly told about the importance of sleep, and different advice suggests ways to rest, from the best color to sleep under, or sleeping on a mattress on the floor. However, new research proves catching up on sleep on your off days can help prevent issues like heart disease.
Study shows catching up on sleep can prevent heart disease
Getting enough sleep is important for your mental and physical health, allowing your brain to prepare for the next day and form new pathways to help you learn and remember information.
Many people dont get enough sleep due to work or family commitments, and although a lie-in every now and again is no replacement for a regular good nights rest, a study suggests that catching up on sleep might help reduce the risk of heart disease.
Findings presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2024 showed that sleep-deprived people who mostly catch up on sleep during the weekends have less of a risk of heart disease compared with those who did not get the extra hours in.
Busy modern lifestyles result in people being sleep-deprived on work or school days and therefore try to catch up with compensatory on weekends. The UK Biobank study showed those who caught up the most had a 20% lower risk of developing heart disease than those with the least.
Sufficient compensatory sleep is linked to a lower risk of heart disease. “The association becomes even more pronounced among individuals who regularly experience inadequate sleep on weekdays,” according to author Yanjun Song, of Chinas National Centre for Cardiovascular Diseases at Fuwai Hospital, in Beijing.
According to the World Health Organisation, the top causes of death are associated with cardiovascular (ischaemic heart disease, stroke) and respiratory (COVID-19, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lower respiratory infections).
Cardiovascular disease is a group of disorders that affect the heart and blood vessels, affecting your heart or circulation.
Data from more than 90,000 people (who are part of the UK Biobank project, which holds medical and lifestyle records on individuals) suggests compensating for lack of sleep during the week with extra on the weekend can mitigate the negative effects of deprivation.
19,816 individuals met the criteria for being sleep-deprived and hospital records were used to identify those who had heart diseases, heart failure, irregular heart rhythm and stroke. Over a follow-up period of 14 years, the team found that people with the most extra sleep were 19% less likely to develop heart disease than those with the least amount of compensatory sleep.
Advice for how to catch up on sleep
Maintaining a consistent sleep schedule is important for resyncing circadian rhythms. However, if you find yourself working crazy hours or attending to family needs that take precious time away from your bedtime pillow, try and build time into your schedule to recoup and catch up on sleep.
The study suggests that while a daily sleep routine is beneficial, there is no harm in catching up if you need to. To do this, you must try and stay consistent, making time when you have it.
Sleep Foundation advises keeping a diary can help you track your sleep habits and identify patterns or practices that are affecting your rest at bedtime.
Remember that it can take days to recover from a lack of sleep, so take time to allow your body to catch up on the rest it needs.
