A recent study published in the journal Nature on May 13 suggests that both insufficient and excessive sleep may negatively impact health and accelerate aging across various organs. Researchers indicate that there is a sleep "sweet spot" for optimal health, estimated at between 6.4 and 7.8 hours per night.
Read More
Mark Lachs, co-chief of the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, noted the significance of this finding, stating, "Too little sleep is bad and too much sleep is bad. It is a Goldilocks kind of phenomenon.”
Lead author Junhao Wen, an assistant professor of radiology at Columbia University, emphasized the importance of consistent sleep duration within the 6 to 8-hour range for overall health benefits. Wen's interest in sleep research was driven by his own challenges with sleep quality. His lab has developed biological aging clocks, which utilize biomedical data and machine learning to assess the physiological aging of organs based on sleep duration.
The study analyzed data from the UK Biobank, which includes information from 500,000 participants, highlighting that deviations from the optimal sleep range lead to accelerated organ aging. The results revealed a U-shaped relationship; minor variations from the ideal amount of sleep had less impact on aging than larger variations.
Marie-Pierre St-Onge, a professor of nutritional medicine at Columbia University, who was not involved in the research, stated that earlier studies suggested an optimal sleep duration around 6.5 to 7.5 hours.
The data also revealed a trend indicating that women may require slightly more sleep than men. For instance, the findings suggested that while men perform best with an average of 7.7 hours of sleep, women benefit from about 7.82 hours.
Researchers recommend individuals pay attention to their own sleep needs. For those feeling fatigued during the day, adjusting bedtime or daily habits can help improve sleep quality. Ana Krieger, a professor of medicine at Weill Cornell, emphasized the importance of morning light exposure in regulating circadian rhythms.
Interestingly, the study found that sleeping more than 8 hours is linked to accelerated aging, which may be due to underlying health issues that cause increased sleep duration. However, the relationship is not definitive, and factors such as depression might exacerbate longer sleep durations.
The study's limitations include its demographic skew towards individuals of White European ancestry, prompting researchers to call for more diverse samples in future studies. Although the average optimal sleep range is suggested to be between 6.4 and 7.8 hours, individual needs may vary. Experts recommend reducing electronic use before bed and maintaining a conducive sleeping environment for better sleep quality.
Overall, the study highlights the critical role of quality sleep in maintaining overall health and well-being, with experts asserting that good sleep is fundamental for optimal functioning across bodily systems.