Sleeping in on weekends could improve your heart health

Does snoozing a little later on the weekend actually help you catch up on sleep you missed earlier in the week? That has been a highly debated question for decades, but now a new study shows that trying to catch up on sleep could help you live longer .

Throughout busy weeks many people accrue what is known as “sleep debt.” That is the difference between how much sleep you need and how much you actually get. New research shows those who try to eliminate some sleep debt on weekends by getting up later are 19% less likely to develop heart disease.

Several previous studies have shown that not getting enough sleep in general can be bad for your health in a number of ways . However, not much research has been done about the effect of getting extra sleep on weekends. Researchers looked at nearly 91,000 people to find a link between catching up on sleep and heart health , specifically.

They found about one in five people were considered sleep deprived. That means they get less than the recommended seven hours per night. Those who got the most extra sleep on weekends were less likely to develop heart disease , according to the findings.

Researchers said the data does not necessarily mean the extra sleep is what is making people healthier. They also say sleeping later on weekends cannot undo the effects of a large buildup of sleep debt throughout the week.

An unrelated Gallup poll recently found less than half of American adults say they get as much sleep as they need.

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