Teens who go to bed earlier and have more efficient, less variable sleep at 15 years old have better cardiovascular health at 22, found a new study published in Sleep.
Research shows that short sleep duration in middle and older age predicts cardiovascular health in later life. How adolescent sleep health predicts cardiovascular health in young adulthood, however, remains unclear.
In the current study, researchers examined multiple dimensions of sleep in relation to cardiovascular health using data from 307 young adults involved in the US-based Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study. At 15 years old, participants wore actigraphy for around a week to assess sleep variables. At age 22, participants' cardiovascular health was assessed using the seven non-sleep factors from the American Heart Association's 'Life's Essential 8', including self-reported diet, physical activity, nicotine exposure, objectively measured body mass index, blood lipids, blood glucose, and blood pressure.
Ultimately, the researchers found that falling asleep and waking up earlier, spending less time in bed awake, and having lower variability in total sleep time and onset were linked to better cardiovascular health. Unexpectedly, they found that total sleep time during adolescence did not significantly predict cardiovascular health in young adulthood.
"This single null finding, of course, does not indicate that total sleep time is unimportant. Rather, when paired with other studies, these findings underscore the complexity of sleep health and the need to consider multiple sleep dimensions as potential targets for promoting and maintaining cardiovascular health," study author, Gina Marie Mathew, Ph.D, Senior Postdoctoral Associate at the Program in Public Health at Stony Brook Medicine, said in a press release.
"Future research and recommendations should emphasize the importance of multiple dimensions of sleep health, including earlier sleep timing, higher sleep maintenance efficiency, and lower sleep variability as protective factors for long-term heart health," she added.
Sources: EurekAlert, Sleep