Adults Who Sleep More Than Nine Hours Die Early

Adults who sleep more than nine hours a night are 30 per cent more likely to DIE early, boffins have revealed.

Scientists have discovered getting too much sleep is just as bad for people as having too little.


The optimum number of hours adults should sleep a night is between seven and eight, and are known as medium-sleepers.

A decade-long study shows adults who regularly sleep more than eight hours, categorised as long-sleepers, were at risk of dying early.

Researchers also found those who regularly slept for less than six hours, known as short-sleepers, were also more likely to die earlier than those who gained seven hours a night.

More than one million people were asked about their sleeping habits and followed up over time as part of the study at Warwick University.

Experts found excess of sleep can create similar problems to having too little, including depression, heart disease, diabetes and other underlying health concerns.

Professor Franco Cappuccio (corr), of the cardiovascular medicine and epidemiology at the university, put the participants into three broad groups.

His analysis showed 30 per cent more of the long sleepers died compared to medium sleepers.

And 12 per cent more of short sleepers died in the same period compared to medium sleepers.

Shockingly, the significant rise in mortality risk is equivalent to the risk of drinking several units of alcohol per day.

Prof Cappuccio said: "We tend to rely on very simple methods of asking people on average how many hours they sleep a night.

"It has to be taken with a pinch of salt.

"Naturally, you have to rely on your memory and you don't know if you're reporting time in bed or time asleep and whether you're accounting for naps, and so forth."

Doctor Gregg Jacobs, of the Sleep Disorders Center at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, backed up the study.

He said: "Seven hours sleep keeps turning up over and over again.

"The typical adult today reports seven hours of sleep.

"And that actually seems to be the median sleep duration in the adult population around the world.

"That suggests there's something around seven hours of sleep that's kind of natural for the brain."


Culled From Mirror