In real life, many people have two criteria for judging "good sleep": one is to sleep enough for 8 hours, and the other is to have good sleep quality.
However, as sleep science research deepens, there is growing evidence that getting enough 8 hours of sleep is not the gold standard for optimal sleep. Studies have found that people who sleep like this are more likely to have brain problems, and they are more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease when they are old in the future!
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People who sleep like this are more likely to have problems with their brains!
In December 2023, researchers at Harvard University published a study in Neurology showing that people with irregular sleep have a higher risk of dementia, with a 53% higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (1). In other words, if you sleep at 10 a.m. yesterday, go to bed at 11 a.m. today, and stay up until 2 a.m. tomorrow, the risk of dementia increases for people who sleep like this.
The study included a total of 88,000 participants aged 40-69 years, with an average age of 62 years, of whom 56% were women. By having them wear a monitoring device, their sleep data such as time to fall asleep, time to wake up, etc., were collected. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was also used to assess the levels of markers related to brain health.
Studies have found an association between irregular sleep and the risk of dementia, with people with the most irregular sleeps in particular having the highest risk of developing dementia. A total of 480 people developed Alzheimer's disease over a follow-up period of 7.2 years. ①
In life, many people are concerned about "sleeping enough for 8 hours" and "sleeping well", but in fact, they should be more concerned about "sleep regularity". Researchers say sleep regularity is an important part of healthy sleep that we should be aware of. People who sleep irregularly should develop regular bedtime and wake-up times to reduce the risk of dementia.
If you don't sleep regularly, your body is more likely to die early
In August 2023, a study published in the journal Sleep Health showed that maintaining a stable sleep routine can help slow down the body's biological aging process. Compared to people with stable sleep habits, people with large deviations in sleep onset time and large differences in sleep on weekdays and weekends were 9 months older. ②
In other words, a person who sleeps irregularly every day will age 9 months earlier than a person who sleeps regularly!
Therefore, it is recommended to maintain a stable sleep habit and maintain a similar time to fall asleep and wake up every day to help slow down the biological aging process.
Regular work and rest is the best health
Some people often ask, "Is eating XXX can prevent cancer" and "Is eating some XXX can be healthy"?
Previously, a doctor shared in a guest with Health Times, "When I was a clinician, I found that a large part of my patients' diseases are caused by irregular lifestyles. People who don't eat regularly can easily lead to stomach problems and obesity in the end, and people who don't sleep regularly often have some minor physical problems. Behind many diseases, it is the breaking of the 'regular routine'. ”
Photo by Health Times Cao Zihao
Lu Lin, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and president of Peking University Sixth Hospital, once pointed out in a public speech that "irregular work and rest times will lead to problems such as difficulty falling asleep, frequent awakenings, and early awakenings." There is no clear rule on the best time to fall asleep and wake up, but nature's circadian rhythm should be followed. ”③
Many people always feel that "staying up late is harmful" and "sleeping less than 8 hours is harmful", but irregular sleep may not be harmful at all.
A 2020 study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC) showed that people who slept more than 90 minutes per night for an average of more than 7 days had a more than 2-fold increased risk of cardiovascular disease over a five-year period compared to those who had regular sleep. ④
So, instead of trying to spend money on all kinds of supplements, skin care products, and cosmetics, it is better to go to bed and wake up on time. Regular work and rest is the best health.
Sleep regularly and don't do these 7 things before bed!
1. Don't exercise vigorously before bedtime
Many people are accustomed to running at night, or exercising at night, but in fact, exercising at night may over-excite your brain and affect regular sleep.
"Exercising during the day increases fatigue in the body, which also promotes sleep, making it relatively easy to sleep at night. Yin Guoping, deputy chief physician of the Sleep Medicine Center of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery of Beijing Tsinghua Changgung Hospital affiliated to Tsinghua University, reminded in an interview with a reporter from Science and Technology Daily in 2020 that exercise should be put into the daytime, and you can choose to increase the amount of exercise and activity every morning or afternoon to consume the remaining energy of the body to achieve the purpose of fitness and improve sleep. Doing a lot of exercise at night will make the brain overexcited, such as secreting related hormones, so being too excited will affect falling asleep. ⑤
2. Don't eat too much before bed
Chen Chen, chief physician of the Department of Neurology of Shanxi Provincial Cardiovascular Disease Hospital, published an article in the People's Daily Health Account in 2022 that many people like to eat supper, or eat dinner too late, which will actually affect our sleep. Eating too much before bed can cause blood sugar to rise, so that the person will be more excited and it will be difficult for us to fall asleep. If you are really hungry before bedtime, do not eat foods high in sugar and carbs, and drink a glass of warm milk. ⑥
3. Try not to play with your phone when you sleep
Sleeping, playing with mobile phones, and watching short videos for a while are the daily state of many people. But often when I come back to my senses, I have been lying in bed for 1-2 hours. Playing with your phone before bed will not only make you sleep late, but it may also make you even more unable to fall asleep after putting down your phone, resulting in difficulty falling asleep. Dr. Chen Chen introduced that I have a friend who improved sleep by doing this, put the mobile phone in the living room at 9 o'clock, set it to silent, thunder does not move, does not look at the mobile phone, and does not deal with things, after a period of conditioning, not only sleep has improved, but even anxiety and depression have improved very significantly. ⑥
Photo by Ren Xuan of Health Times
4. Don't talk too much before bed
Some people like to chat with people and talk on the phone before going to bed. In fact, this will also affect the sleep situation very much, because talking too much can easily excite the brain and activate the mind, making it difficult for people to fall asleep. And often after chatting, some people will continue to ponder the content of the chat and conversation just now, resulting in even more sleeplessness.
5. Don't overuse your brain before bed
Many times some people are used to solving the work that was not done that day in the evening, especially the more brain-consuming work.
In fact, don't overuse your brain before going to bed, it will put your brain in a state of excitement, and people can't fall asleep even though they've been lying down.
6. Don't get emotional before bed
Some people have had the experience of arguing with family/friends before bedtime, but this often does not sleep that night and the quality of sleep is particularly poor. This is because people's joys, sorrows, and sorrows are prone to cause excitement or disorder in the nerve center, making it difficult for people to fall asleep. Therefore, before going to bed, do not be overjoyed, angry, or angry, and try to calm your mood.
7. Don't drink strong tea and coffee before bed
Many people know that strong tea, coffee and caffeinated drinks can cause you to be unable to fall asleep, in addition, some milk tea and other teas are also best not to drink 3-4 hours before bedtime, which will also lead to hyperactivity before bedtime and inability to sleep regularly.
This article is synthesized from:
①Stephanie R. Yiallourou et al, Association of the Sleep Regularity Index With Incident Dementia and Brain Volume, Neurology (2023). DOI: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000208029 , doi.org/10.1212/WNL.0000000000208029
②Day-to-day deviations in sleep parameters and biological aging: Findings from the NHANES 2011-2014. Sleep Health. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sleh.2023.07.018
(3)2019-09-02 Health Times "Bad sleep is more likely to become fat?Academician Lu Lin: These diseases are related to insomnia"
④Tianyi Huang, Sara Mariani, Susan Redline.Sleep Irregularity and Risk of Cardiovascular Events.J Am Coll Cardiol. 2020 Mar, 75 (9) 991-999.
(5)2020-12-20Science and Technology Daily "Daily Rumors|These Internet Celebrity Sleep Tricks Can't Make You Sleep Better"
(6)2022-12-05People's Daily Health Client "Chen Chen Brain Doctor" "6 Sleep Aid Methods that Friends with Insomnia Must Know!"
Source: Health Times