Godae Medical School Research Team Tracks 3,757 People Over 18 Years
Research Team: "An Average of 10-20 Minutes to Fall Asleep Is Appropriate"
A study has found that people who usually have difficulty falling asleep and take a long time to fall asleep have up to twice the risk of death compared to those who do not.
A study has found that people who usually have difficulty falling asleep and take a long time to fall asleep have up to twice the risk of death compared to those who do not. [Photo by Pixabay]
On the 25th, Professor Shin Cheol's research team at the Human Genome Research Institute of Korea University College of Medicine conducted a prospective cohort study over 18 years on 3,757 individuals aged 40 to 69 living in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, and reported that such an association was observed between the time taken to fall asleep and the risk of death.
The research team defined the time it took participants to fall asleep as 'sleep latency.' Using 16?30 minutes as a reference, they categorized participants into an 'intermittent delay group'?those who failed to fall asleep within 30 minutes 1?2 times in the past month?and a 'habitual delay group'?those who failed to fall asleep within 60 minutes at least once a week or failed to fall asleep within 30 minutes three or more times a week?and compared their mortality risks.
As a result, after adjusting for demographic characteristics, physical traits, lifestyle habits, and chronic diseases, the mortality risk was found to be 1.33 times higher in the intermittent delay group and 2.22 times higher in the habitual delay group.
Habitual Delay Group Has 2.74 Times Higher Risk of Death from Cancer
A study has found that people who usually have difficulty falling asleep and take a long time to fall asleep have up to twice the risk of death compared to those who do not. [Photo by Pixabay]
In the habitual delay group, the risk of death from cancer increased 2.74 times under the same comparison conditions.
The research team speculated that prolonged sleep latency could be caused by various factors such as insomnia, depression, and medication use. They suggested that hyperarousal responses, chronic stress reactions, and inflammatory rebounds resulting from these factors may contribute to increasing the risk of death.
They also analyzed that the extension of sleep latency might lead to a deficiency of melatonin, a biological hormone secreted in the brain that regulates sleep rhythms, which could be a potential factor increasing the risk of cancer mortality.
The research team stated, "It is significant that this is the first time a meaningful association between sleep latency and mortality has been confirmed through a large-scale prospective study in Korea," adding, "Since the typical sleep latency for adults is 10?20 minutes, habitual delays can prevent the completion of sufficient sleep cycles, thereby increasing the risk of chronic sleep disorders as well as death and cancer. Therefore, efforts to prevent this are necessary."
This research was published in the latest issue of Lancet Healthy Longevity, a medical journal issued by The Lancet.
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