The majority of adults in the United States don’t get enough sleep. Sleep is as essential to a healthy lifestyle as good nutrition and exercise, and many people don’t realize that lack of sleep is associated with numerous chronic health conditions.
At his practice in Tarzana, California, Dr. Samuel I. Fink and his team often treat cardiology patients unaware of the connection between sleep and heart health. In this post, we look at that connection.
When you sleep, your blood pressure is lower than when you’re awake. Your heart works all the time, but when your blood pressure is lower, it doesn’t have to work quite as hard.
Lack of sleep, poor sleep, or frequent waking can all mean your heart and blood vessels don’t get that needed rest. The result is often hypertension — the medical name for high blood pressure.
Hypertension is a type of cardiovascular disease that increases your risk of heart attack, stroke, and other problems.
When you don’t get enough quality sleep, your body produces stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline.
Stress hormones are associated with the so-called fight-or-flight response, keeping your body in a state of readiness. Your blood pressure rises, and your heart beats faster, which isn’t a problem for a short period; long-term, it can cause significant health issues.
Lack of sleep or poor-quality sleep can lead to chronic stress, inflammation, an irregular heart rhythm, and overall strain on your cardiovascular system.
A lack of good sleep can also affect the hormones that regulate hunger. A hormone called ghrelin makes you feel hungry, and another called leptin makes you feel full. When you don’t get enough sleep, your body produces more ghrelin and less leptin.
This hormonal imbalance may cause you to feel hungrier more often and lead to weight gain. Being overweight or obese raises your risk of cardiovascular problems, as well as of diabetes.
Getting enough good sleep can help balance the production of ghrelin and leptin, making it easier to maintain a healthy weight.
How your body processes the food you eat can impact your health. When you don’t get sufficient restful sleep, your body may not process glucose properly.
Glucose is another name for blood sugar, and high blood sugar is the main symptom of Type 2 diabetes. Consistent good sleep can help balance the hormones that control your blood sugar.
Some 30 million Americans have sleep apnea, which is a serious condition on its own and one of the strongest sleep-related risk factors for heart disease.
When you have sleep apnea, the tissues at the back of your throat collapse while you sleep, blocking your airways so you can’t breathe. That happens repeatedly throughout the night.
Untreated sleep apnea can cause daytime drowsiness, cognitive problems, high blood pressure, and other issues, including an increased risk of cardiovascular complications.
Common symptoms include snoring, waking up suddenly and gasping during the night, and feeling excessively tired during the day.
Most everyone can improve their sleep habits. Dr. Fink encourages you to try:
If you struggle to sleep and are concerned about the effects on your health, schedule an appointment with Dr. Fink today.
