Sleeping less? New study links it to developing high blood pressure

If you sleep for less than seven hours, it could raise the risk of developing high blood pressure over time, according to a new study.Â

Researchers presenting their latest findings at the American College of Cardiology’s Annual Scientific Session, said that while prior studies linked sleep patterns to high blood pressure, the evidence of the same in the reports has been inconsistent.Â

Data from 16 studies conducted between January 2000 and May 2023 were analysed, evaluating hypertension in 10,44,035 people from six countries, who did not have a previous history of high blood pressure.Â

The findings suggested that a short duration of sleep caused hypertension (high blood pressure) even after adjusting factors like age, sex, education, body mass index (BMI), blood pressure, and smoking status, etc.Â

If you sleep for less than seven hours, it could raise the risk of developing high blood pressure over time. (Photo: Getty Images)

Interestingly, the association was higher in those who slept for less than five hours.

Sleeping less than seven hours was associated with a 7% increased risk of developing high blood pressure, which spiked to 11% when reported sleep duration was less than five hours.Â

“We saw a trend between longer sleep durations and a greater occurrence of high blood pressure, but it was not statistically significant. Getting seven to eight hours of sleep, as is recommended by sleep experts, may be the best for your heart too,” said Kaveh Hosseini, assistant professor of cardiology at the Tehran Heart Center in Iran and principal investigator of the study.Â

By comparison, diabetes and smoking are known to heighten one’s risk of hypertension by at least 20%, Hosseini said.Â

By comparison, diabetes and smoking are known to heighten one’s risk of hypertension by at least 20%, Hosseini said. (Photo: Getty Images)

Researchers found that age has nothing to do with this association, since sleep patterns tend to change with age.Â

The age of the participants ranged from 35.4 years to 60.9 years and more than half (61%) were female.Â

When compared with men, females who reported less than seven hours of sleep had a 7% greater risk of developing high blood pressure.

The study concluded that people should talk with their healthcare team about their sleep patterns, especially if they have disrupted sleep that might be due to obstructive sleep apnea.Â

When compared with men, females who reported less than seven hours of sleep had a 7% greater risk of developing high blood pressure. (Photo: Getty Images)

Sleep apnea has been tied to higher rates of high blood pressure, stroke and coronary artery disease.

High blood pressure, on the other hand, raises risk of various heart diseases and stroke.Â

The study, however, has limitations. Sleep duration was based on self-reported questionnaires, so changes over the follow-up period were not assessed.Â