Does Missing Sleep Take a Toll On Your Brain?
Missing out on adequate sleep could be taking years off your life. New research from the Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), published in the journal Sleep Advances, found that poor sleep may shorten life expectancy more than other lifestyle factors like diet, exercise and loneliness.
The researchers analyzed nationwide CDC survey data, identifying trends associated with average life expectancy by county, according to a press release. The study found that lack of adequate sleep led to higher mortality risk in every U.S. state and was the top behavioral driver compared to other factors, only behind smoking.
Senior study author Andrew McHill, Ph.D., associate professor and director of the Sleep, Chronobiology, and Health Laboratory in the OHSU School of Nursing, noted in a statement that he did not expect sleep to be “so strongly correlated” to life expectancy.
Excerpted from Fox 5 NY
