Sleep and Cholesterol
New research suggests a link between sleep patterns and cholesterol levels in the elderly. The study, Long Sleep Duration is Associated With Serum Cholesterol in the Elderly: The Rotterdam Study, was published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.
The research team studied 768 participants aged between 57 and 97, none of whom used cholesterol lowering drugs. They found definite links between sleep patterns and raised cholesterol levels.
There seemed to be two different factors associated with the increase in cholesterol: in subjects aged below 65 the main link was with increased total time in bed, with those aged over 70 the main link was with sleep fragmentation. The researchers concluded:
The research team studied 768 participants aged between 57 and 97, none of whom used cholesterol lowering drugs. They found definite links between sleep patterns and raised cholesterol levels.
There seemed to be two different factors associated with the increase in cholesterol: in subjects aged below 65 the main link was with increased total time in bed, with those aged over 70 the main link was with sleep fragmentation. The researchers concluded:
"A longer sleep duration was related to higher total cholesterol level and a higher total/HDL cholesterol ratio. Two separate mechanisms, a longer time in bed and sleep fragmentation, seem to explain these associations in different age categories."It's important to remember that correlation doesn't necessarily mean causality. There may be other factors such as physical fitness and activity levels that affect both sleep patterns and cholesterol levels.
Labels: cholesterol, sleep fragmentation
