Major study identifies common sleep habit that's linked to an early death
If your afternoon naps often last for more than half an hour you could be on your way to an early grave, new research has suggested.
A study, by experts from the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, also found that napping between midday and early afternoon is linked to dying early.
This contradicts advice from the NHS and the American Academy of Sleep Medicine. that recommends napping after midday and before mid-afternoon.
Napping for durations that wildly vary from day to faced also entails greater health risks.
The researchers, who studied almost 90,000 people, found that these alarming associations remained even after accounting for factors like age, sex, body weight, smoking, alcohol use and length of sleep.
While experts aren't entirely sure why these three napping habits are linked to early death, there are some potential explanations.
It could be that either be longer or irregular naps are a sign of underlying health issues, or this sleeping pattern may disrupt the body's natural rhythms.
Other research has found that poor sleep patterns can be a sign of other health issues such as depression, diabetes and heart disease.
The new study tracked the health of 86,000 adults with an average age of 63 over the course of 11 years.
For one week during the study, they were asked to wear a health tracker device to monitor their sleep.
Within the 11 year follow-up period, 5,189 people, six percent of the group, died.
While results showed that those with specific napping behaviours were more likely to die, the study cannot prove cause and effect, the scientists cautioned.
Previous studies have raised the alarm over the dangers of napping.
Earlier this year, a study found that long daytime naps can increase the risk of a stroke by nearly a quarter.
Studies suggest that around one in five people in the UK regularly have naps, although the habit is most common in people who sleep for five hours a night or less.
A healthy adult is recommended by the NHS to get around seven to nine hours sleep, but age, health, and personal circumstances affect how much you need.
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