Even when our weight remains normal and the risk of sleep apnea is low, the likelihood of having a stroke can increase significantly if we tend to sleep less than six hours a night, say researchers at the University of Alabama in Birmingham.
Three-year observations among 5666 active middle-aged and older people showed that sleep deprivation alone could be a harbinger of risk factors for stroke.
At the beginning of the observation, the participants were not at high risk (no cardiovascular diseases or breathing disorders during sleep were found). At the next stages, the scientists assessed the health of the participants. After taking into account body mass index (BMI), they found that stroke was more common in people whose weight was normal, but whose sleep duration was less than six hours a day. However, this relationship did not work for people who were overweight or obese.
Sleep habits are highly modifiable. Cognitive behavioral therapy or the inclusion of pharmacological agents can help, says study author Dr Megan Ruiter. If further work confirms these conclusions, it would be a strong argument for the need to raise awareness among physicians and patients about the effects of sleep on the likelihood of stroke, especially among those who have not been diagnosed with traditional risk factors.
The results of the research were presented at the 26th Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies (APSS) in Boston.