US researchers have reported 4 different sleep patterns that people follow can help predict long-term health. The team at Pennsylvania State University, whose study was published in Psychosomatic Medicine, found ‘insomnia sleepers’ were associated with an increased risk up to 81% of cardiovascular disease, diabetes and depression over a 10-year period.
Lead author Professor Soomi Lee said ‘having a better understanding of how sleep affects our overall health is paramount because it allows us to target sleep as a modifiable factor for future prevention and intervention strategies.’
Research consistently links poor sleep to a myriad of adverse health outcomes, ranging from heightened risks of depression, chronic pain and cardiovascular diseases to cognitive decline.
Professor Lee told medicalnewstoday.com: ‘Sleep, being a fundamental daily behaviour, holds significant potential – if we enhance our sleep patterns on a daily basis, the cumulative effect on our health cannot be underestimated.’
Lee’s team used data from 3,700 participants in the Midlife in the United States study (MIDUS) – with each person’s sleep habits and chronic health details across two different time points 10 years apart – to identify 4 different sleep patterns:
- ‘Good sleepers’: the best sleeping habits across all data points;
- ‘Nappers’: mostly good sleepers, but take daytime naps frequently;
- ‘Weekend catch-up sleepers’: irregular sleep on weekdays and slept longer on weekends and holidays;
- ‘Insomnia sleepers’: sleeping issues such as taking a long time to fall asleep, short sleep durations and increased tiredness during the day.
Professor Lee was ‘surprised’ more than half participants fell into the ‘insomnia sleepers’ or ‘nappers’ groups. ‘Our study sample consisted primarily of healthy adults, leading us to anticipate better sleep health patterns. However the findings highlight the importance of addressing sleep health even among ostensibly healthy populations.’
She emphasised: ‘Our findings revealed being an insomnia sleeper at any point over the 10-year period significantly increased the likelihood of developing multiple chronic health conditions, with up to an 81% increase observed.’
She also noted: ‘Insomnia sleepers exhibited a reduced likelihood of transitioning to other sleep patterns over the decade, suggesting a persistent challenge in returning to optimal sleep.’
