Switch off for good health
The summer seems to have arrived at last. It is a great time to adopt a healthy lifestyle.
Increasing exercise and modifying the diet are at the top of the list. Not smoking and drinking only in moderation should be there as well, but so too should be the aim of getting a good night's sleep. Research has shown that getting eight hours sleep a night is probably one of the best things you can do for your health.
A study from Pittsburgh in the USA published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, suggests that if you sleep for less than eight hours a night, then your immune system is likely to function sub-optimally and you are more likely to catch colds and other viruses.
They concluded that people who had long, uninterrupted sleep had the best immune systems. This is fascinating, since other studies have suggested people who get seven to eight hours of unbroken sleep have lower rates of heart disease.
In the study 153 men and women were followed up for four years. They were all asked how many hours they slept a night and whether they felt rested. They also asked how much time the participants spent in bed sleeping. They were then given nose drops containing a common cold virus.
Five days later, they reported any signs and symptoms of a cold. The researchers also collected mucus samples to test for the virus. After a month they all had blood taken to check to see if they had developed antibodies to the virus. It was found that those people who slept less than eight hours a night were three times more likely to develop a cold. More than that, those people who had broken sleep were five times more likely to catch cold.
Another study from Chicago looked at a group of 500 men and women aged between 35 and 47 years and followed them up for five years. They were looking to see whether sleep time could in any way relate to the build up of calcium deposits in arteries. They all were followed up with CT scans. At the start of the study none of the participants had calcium deposits in their arteries, but at the end of the five year period, 12 per cent had developed them.
The significance of this calcium is that it makes the arteries less flexible and may go on to cause 'hardening of the arteries.' Interestingly, they found that those who slept an extra hour a night had one third the risk of developing calcification. That is a significant finding. Young people tend burn the midnight oil, especially as exam season looms.
Yet staying up late to study has been shown to be counter-productive. Another trial from Chicago with 200 students found that people learn best when they are not tired. But more than that, a good sleep actually consolidates learning.
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Weather for Wakefield
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 13 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 12 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 12 mph
Wind direction: North east
