Sleeping less than six hours a day, can affect the heart

Sleeping less than six hours a day, can affect the heart

After analyzing more than 470 000 people in eight countries including U.S., British researchers found that sleeping too little or too much sleep can affect the heart, increasing the risk of stroke and heart attack. The study results were recently published in European Heart Journal.

The researchers found that people who sleep less than six hours a night and have trouble sleeping, have a 48 percent greater chance of developing or dying from heart disease or stroke and 15 percent higher risk of developing or dying from stroke.

Dr. Francesco Cappuccio, of Warwick Medical School in England and coauthor of the research, said: "The tendency of late nights and early mornings, it's a time bomb for health, so you need to take steps to reduce their risk of developing these life-threatening diseases.

For his part, Dr. Michelle Miller, co-authored the study, said: "Chronic short sleep produces hormones and chemicals in the body, increasing the risk of developing heart disease and stroke and other conditions such as high blood pressure and cholesterol, diabetes and obesity.

Therefore, seven hours sleep a night, protect your health and reduce the risk of chronic diseases, she said.