When is the best bedtime for a healthy heart? New study finds the ideal hour
A new study found that going to sleep between 10 p.m. and 10:59 p.m. is the ideal bedtime for overall heart health.
The peer-reviewed study by the European Heart Journal — Digital Health published Nov. 9 included 88,026 people in the UK Biobank, found between 2006 and 2010. Ages ranged from 43 to 79, and the average participant age was 61 years. Fifty-eight percent of participants were women.
Data was collected over a period of seven days for each individual, by taking information on their sleep patterns with a wrist monitor. Cardiovascular health checkups and diagnoses were performed prior to the study, along with lifestyle habits.
During follow-ups years later, the study found 3.6% of individuals had developed some form of heart disease. Findings showed this occurred most often with those who went to sleep after midnight — there was a 25% higher risk of heart disease compared with those who went to sleep between 10 p.m. and 10:59 p.m., according to a news release.
The lowest case of this occurring was in those who went to sleep between 10 p.m. and 10:59 p.m.
“The body has a 24-hour internal clock, called circadian rhythm, that helps regulate physical and mental functioning,” David Plans, one of the study’s authors, said in the release. “While we cannot conclude causation from our study, the results suggest that early or late bedtimes may be more likely to disrupt the body clock, with adverse consequences for cardiovascular health.”
The study found there was a 12% greater risk for those going to sleep from 11 to 11:59 p.m. and a 24% higher risk for those sleeping before 10 p.m.
Findings also showed that women going to sleep later were more likely to have cardiovascular disease. Researchers note that the reason for this is still unknown.
“It may be that there is a sex difference in how the endocrine system responds to a disruption in circadian rhythm,” Plans said in the release. “Alternatively, the older age of study participants could be a confounding factor since women’s cardiovascular risk increases post-menopause – meaning there may be no difference in the strength of the association between women and men.”
The researchers shared that this study was likely one of the most “extensive” done to look into the correlation between sleep and cardiovascular disease risk. They list one weakness of the participants being primarily white and British and a high percentage of individuals with “higher socioeconomic backgrounds.”
“Our study indicates that the optimum time to go to sleep is at a specific point in the body’s 24-hour cycle and deviations may be detrimental to health,” Plans said in the release. “The riskiest time was after midnight, potentially because it may reduce the likelihood of seeing morning light, which resets the body clock.”
This story was originally published November 10, 2021 at 2:28 PM.
