Sleep and Cardiovascular Health
The Key Points
- Stick to a sleep schedule. Go to bed at the same time each night and wake up at the same time each
morning, including on the weekends. - Aim for 30 minutes of physical activity on 5 days of the week. Try to avoid exercising too late in the
day. There should be a 2 to 3-hour time window from when you finished exercise to bedtime. - Avoid caffeine after 1 pm, caffeine is a stimulant and can be found in drinks such as teas, coffees, soft
drinks and in foods such as chocolate. - While alcohol might help you to relax and send you off to sleep quicker, you’ll limit the amount of
deep sleep you get (this is known as REM sleep). Therefore, avoid having an alcoholic drink/nightcap
before bedtime. - Rich and heavy meals before you sleep might give you indigestion and have a negative impact on the
quality of your sleep. Swap your refined carbohydrates such as white rice, white bread, white pasta
for wholegrain/whole wheat alternatives. - Bedroom hygiene: your bedroom should be a dark, cool and technology free zone. With our body
temperature at its highest before sleep, having a cool room suits our body temperature needs.
Sleep and Physical Health (Cardiovascular Health): The Article
- Sleep plays an important role in both good physical and mental health. Experts recommend that
adults should get between 7 to 9 hours of good quality sleep a night. - During non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep stages, your heart rate slows down, blood pressure
drops, and your breathing stabilises. These responses reduce stress on your heart and allow time for
your body to recover. - Even though sleep is so important, two thirds of adults don’t get the recommended amount of sleep
according to The World Health Organisation. - Evidence shows there is an association between the amount you sleep and risk of diseases such as
obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and mortality 1 . - When we sleep, blood pressure drops by around 10-20% 2 and having short sleep means your blood
pressure will be higher for longer periods of time. Therefore, sleeping less than 5 hours a night on
average has an increased risk for developing high blood pressure known as hypertension compared to
sleeping 8 hours a night 3 - However, not only is short sleep duration associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease
but also how disturbed your sleep is 3
References:
- Grandner, M.A., Patel, N.P., Perlis, M.L., Gehrman, P.R., Xie, D.M Sha, D., Pigeon, W.R., Teff, K.,
Weaver, T., & Gooneratne, N.S. (2011). “Obesity, diabetes, and exercise associated with sleep related
complaints in the American Population.” Journal of Public Health. 19:463-474. - Calhoun, D.A., and Harding, S.M. (2010). “Sleep and Hypertension.” Chest. 138(2):434-43.
- Chandola, T., Ferrie, J.E., Perski, A., Akbaraly, T., and Marmot, M.G. (2010). “The effect of short sleep
duration on coronary heart disease risk is greatest among those with sleep disturbances: A
prospective study from Whitehall II cohort” Sleep. 33(6):739-744.
- Grandner, M.A., Patel, N.P., Perlis, M.L., Gehrman, P.R., Xie, D.M Sha, D., Pigeon, W.R., Teff, K.,