Your risk of developing high blood pressure may be increasing if you’re not getting adequate sleep, according to a Columbia University study.  Researchers studied the sleep habits of 4,810 middle-aged people (ages 32-59) over a 10 year time period.

At the beginning of the study, none of the participants had high blood pressure. During the duration of the study, 647 people developed high blood pressure. Researchers found that those people only getting 5 hours of sleep or less each day were twice as likely to develop high blood pressure during the 10 year study as those getting 7-8 hours of sleep daily.

The researchers controlled for numerous factors (including age, gender, ethnicity, obesity, diabetes, physical activity, smoking, alcohol use, salt, and depression) and found that this increased risk was independent of other risk factors for high blood pressure; individuals getting low amounts of sleep still had twice the risk of developing hypertension. They were also more likely to:

• Have a higher body mass index (be overweight)
• Get less regular exercise
• Develop diabetes
• Become depressed
• And reported high levels of day time sleepiness

Additional studies have shown that lack of sleep increases appetite and weight gain and compromises insulin sensitivity, increasing the risk for diabetes.

The Bottom Line:

The author summarizes the conclusions simply by stating that getting a good night’s sleep is very important for good health.

Source: Gangwisch, et al. (April, 2006) Short sleep duration as a risk factor for hypertension. Hypertension.47:833.