Many of us may have heard that good sleep, with a nightly duration 7 to 8 hours in total, is a foundation of good health. We know that sleep affects chronic illness risk and even longevity. In 2024, UK scientists also published a study realting to sleep consistency with surprising results.
Study Findings
The study tracked over 60,000 people, more than 10 million hours of sleep data. It found that having a regular sleep schedule significantly lowered the risk of death from any cause. (Link to study at Bottom of Page)
People with the most consistent sleep routines had a 20% to 48% lower risk of dying compared to those with the most irregular sleep patterns. Why? Seemingly this can align our lifestyle better with our innate circadian rhythms. Interestingly, sleep regularity was a better indicator of lower mortality risk than how long someone slept. These findings held true even after taking into account factors like age, sex, physical activity, smoking, health conditions and lifestyle choices.
Study participants with the highest 20% of the Sleep Regularity Index score went to bed and woke up within roughly 1-hour windows on most days. In contrast, those in the lowest 20% of SRI score had a 3-hour variation in their sleep and wake times. Targeting a sleep and wake schedule that falls within a 1 hour range each day could be an effective strategy for improving sleep regularity, particularly for individuals who have one main sleep period each day.
This latest study adds to our knowledge base and, to our benefit, provides us with another area that we can use to address our sleep and health. Shedding a little light onto previously obscured area of sleep health.
The good news is that healthy, quality sleep can be improved with a few daily habits. In this case, a consistent bedtime.
Much depends on properly understanding your own, unique lifestyle. With a goal of improving sleep duration, common practices include improving sleep hygiene. With the results of this study now public, some might add better consistency in getting into bed as a focus area.
Exercise (strength and cardio) and diet also play a role in improving sleep. It can take time to develop these habits and requires a personalised plan, unique to the individual. What works for your fiend or colleague might not work for you. This where coaching plays its role in supporting health.
Final Thoughts
An important point that the research demonstrates is that sleep is intertwined with multiple aspects of health and lifestyle. So addressing one area of health can also support change - improvement - in other areas. Understanding where to start is useful, learn more about the pillars of health and see what resonates with you.
For most people, improving sleep, health, is about finding motivation and prioritising self-care with an ultimate goal of taking action. If you want to take effective and targeted steps that fit into your unique lifestyle, The Whole Health Practice is here to help.
Whether your interest is healthspan and longevity, to beat chronic illness or to enhance your mental health and well-being, our consultations and programs deliver results that are tailored to your needs.
Our foundational Whole Health Consult identifies and prioritises the key factors - known and unknown - that affect health and wellbeing. It provides targeted recommendations tailored to you, the individual, and your unique lifestyle.
Stay Healthy,
Alastair
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Related Studies
The study in question... Daniel P Windred, Angus C Burns, Jacqueline M Lane, Richa Saxena, Martin K Rutter, Sean W Cain, Andrew J K Phillips, Sleep regularity is a stronger predictor of mortality risk than sleep duration: A prospective cohort study, Sleep, Volume 47, Issue 1, January 2024, zsad253, https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsad253
Li H, Qian F, Han L, Feng W, Zheng D, Guo X, Zhang H. Association of Healthy Sleep Patterns with Risk of Mortality and Life Expectancy at Age 30 Years: A Population-Based Cohort Study. QJM. 2023 Oct 13:hcad237. doi: 10.1093/qjmed/hcad237. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37831896.
Liang YY, Feng H, Chen Y, Jin X, Xue H, Zhou M, Ma H, Ai S, Wing YK, Geng Q, Zhang J. Joint association of physical activity and sleep duration with risk of all-cause and cause-specific mortality: a population-based cohort study using accelerometry. Eur J Prev Cardiol. 2023 Jul 12;30(9):832-843. doi: 10.1093/eurjpc/zwad060. PMID: 36990109.
Kocevska D, Lysen TS, Dotinga A, Koopman-Verhoeff ME, Luijk MPCM, Antypa N, Biermasz NR, Blokstra A, Brug J, Burk WJ, Comijs HC, Corpeleijn E, Dashti HS, de Bruin EJ, de Graaf R, Derks IPM, Dewald-Kaufmann JF, Elders PJM, Gemke RJBJ, Grievink L, Hale L, Hartman CA, Heijnen CJ, Huisman M, Huss A, Ikram MA, Jones SE, Velderman MK, Koning M, Meijer AM, Meijer K, Noordam R, Oldehinkel AJ, Groeniger JO, Penninx BWJH, Picavet HSJ, Pieters S, Reijneveld SA, Reitz E, Renders CM, Rodenburg G, Rutters F, Smith MC, Singh AS, Snijder MB, Stronks K, Ten Have M, Twisk JWR, Van de Mheen D, van der Ende J, van der Heijden KB, van der Velden PG, van Lenthe FJ, van Litsenburg RRL, van Oostrom SH, van Schalkwijk FJ, Sheehan CM, Verheij RA, Verhulst FC, Vermeulen MCM, Vermeulen RCH, Verschuren WMM, Vrijkotte TGM, Wijga AH, Willemen AM, Ter Wolbeek M, Wood AR, Xerxa Y, Bramer WM, Franco OH, Luik AI, Van Someren EJW, Tiemeier H. Sleep characteristics across the lifespan in 1.1 million people from the Netherlands, United Kingdom and United States: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nat Hum Behav. 2021 Jan;5(1):113-122. doi: 10.1038/s41562-020-00965-x. Epub 2020 Nov 16. PMID: 33199855.
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