The American Heart Association extended by one point the list of key guidelines determining the state of the human circulatory system. The updated list now also includes sleep as one of the factors that should be taken into account when assessing health and modifying lifestyle.
As of 2010, there were seven such points, and the list was called “Life’s Simple 7”. From now on, «Life’s Essential 8» includes: diet, exercise, nicotine exposure, body mass index, blood lipids, blood glucose, blood pressure, and sleep. Apart from the appearance of sleep in the above list, other points remained unchanged.
According to Dr. Eduardo Sanchez, the chief physician of the American Society of Cardiology for Prevention, sleep, specifically its length, was on the list after scientists analyzed discoveries over the past decade that it plays an important role in heart health. «People who do not get enough sleep are more likely to develop diseases such as obesity, high blood pressure and diabetes« — said Sanchez.
The length and quality of sleep. How much should we sleep?
Adults should sleep seven to nine hours each night. This is recommended by Dr. Raj Dasgupta, a specialist in lung and sleep intensive care, a professor at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles and a spokesman for the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. Dr. Dasgupta points out, however, that in order to benefit from sleep for the heart, sleep must be of the right quality, that is, deeply.
Constantly waking up prevents you from falling into deep sleep, from which we get real benefits, because then the body regenerates mentally and physically. This can lead to higher blood pressure and an increase in blood sugar levels, which are associated with lowered heart health and the risk of developing heart failure.
Do you feel like your heart is not in the best shape? Take care of them by keeping your Heart under control – a suite of lab tests. It is not worth postponing this. As an alternative, use preparations that support the work of the heart. We recommend For the heart – a herbal set consisting of herbal and fruit tea, a dietary supplement in the form of an elixir and a supplement in the form of capsules.