Going To Bed At This Time Lowers Your Risk Of Heart Disease

Getting a full night of sleep can have numerous health benefits, and a comprehensive new study found that when you go to bed can be just as important as how much sleep you get.

The study, which was published in the European Heart Journal — Digital Health, shows that people who go to bed between 10 and 11 p.m. had a reduced risk of heart disease compared to those who went to bed earlier or later.

Researchers equipped 88,000 volunteers with a wrist-worn accelerometer to track their sleeping patterns and monitored them for six years. They found that people who went to bed after midnight had a 25% greater chance of developing cardiovascular disease than those who went to sleep between 10 and 11, while those who went to bed before 10 p.m. were 24% more likely to suffer from heart disease.

The study found the women were more likely to suffer heart problems if they went to bed later, while men were more likely to develop heart disease if they went to bed before 10 p.m.

The researchers said that going to bed too early or too late can disrupt the body's circadian rhythm.

"The body has a 24-hour internal clock, called circadian rhythm, that helps regulate physical and mental functioning," said study author Dr. David Plans of the University of Exeter, UK. "While we cannot conclude causation from our study, the results suggest that early or late bedtimes may be more likely to disrupt the body clock, with adverse consequences for cardiovascular health."

Heart disease is the number one cause of death in the United States.