Weekend isn't enough: You can't fix lack of sleep in two days

Lots of people who don't sleep enough during weekdays prefer to sleep a lot on weekends.

While it feels good, it can't actually fix your everyday lack of quality sleep.

Insufficient sleep during the week, with attempts to compensate by sleeping in on weekends, can negatively impact cardiovascular health, according to new research.

Let's find out more.

How inconsistent sleep patterns affect you

The study involved 15 healthy young men, who underwent an 11-day inpatient sleep study.

After baseline sleep of up to 10 hours per night for three nights, they were restricted to five hours of sleep per night for five nights, followed by two recovery nights of up to 10 hours of sleep.

Resting heart rates and blood pressure were monitored every two hours during the day.

The study revealed that both heart rate and systolic blood pressure increased with each successive day of sleep restriction.

The average heart rate increased from 69 beats per minute at baseline to nearly 78 BPM by the end of the second day of recovery.

Importantly, these cardiovascular measures did not return to baseline levels even after the two recovery nights.

Why it's important

The findings emphasize the potential long-term impact of inadequate sleep on cardiovascular health.

The research suggests that cumulative cardiovascular stressors from inadequate sleep can make the heart more vulnerable to cardiovascular disease later in life.

The study underscores the importance of prioritizing consistent and sufficient sleep for overall health and well-being, as sleep impacts various aspects of physical and mental health.
 

• Related news:
• research
• sleep
• weekend
• 3 September 2023

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