
What is blood pressure?
Blood pressure is a measure of the force that your blood places your artery walls as it flows around your body. An example of someone’s blood pressure might be given as a reading of 120 over 80 (120/80). The top number (120) is a measure of the pressure on your arteries as the heart beats. The second number (80) indicates the pressure on your artery walls as the heart is relaxed, as its chambers refill. Blood pressure readings vary amongst individuals, and throughout the day. But when blood pressure levels rise consistently above 140/90, it is considered high. This is also known as hypertension. High blood pressure forces your heart to work harder to pump blood around your body, increasing your risk of heart related illness. A number of factors may increase blood pressure, such as excess body fat, physical inactivity, and too much salt or alcohol in your diet. Research has recently emerged, suggesting that poor quality sleep may also have a negative impact on blood pressure, especially in older men.
The research
Research published in the journal, Hypertension, looked at men over the age of 65. The researchers discovered men with the lowest levels of slow-wave sleep had nearly twice the incidence of high blood pressure compared to men with the highest levels of slow wave sleep. According to the researchers, metabolism and hormone balance may be affected by sleep-disordered breathing, sleep duration, and the different stages of sleep. Slow wave sleep also helps to lower blood pressure, and its absence is thought to increase the risk of high blood pressure and additional heart health complications. Sleep disruption is thought to be associated with increased blood pressure. For example, previous research on subjects with obstructive sleep apnoea (a condition involving frequent waking throughout the night) found that 60 percent of sufferers had high blood pressure. The researchers theorised that the effects of poor sleep on blood pressure may be more noticeable in older men because older men are more likely to have sleep disorders, and existing high blood pressure.
Tips on how to sleep better
Adopting good sleep habits gives you the best possible chance of having refreshing sleep. The following tips offer some suggestions on what you can do improve your sleep quality, and potentially help lower your blood pressure.
References available upon request