Khaberni - A large-scale study has revealed that individuals who prefer staying up late and are more active during the late-night hours generally have poorer heart health compared to those who adhere to traditional sleep and waking patterns.
The lead researcher in the study, Sina Kianersi from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, explained that the issue is not inherent to staying up late per se, asserting that "night owls are not doomed to poor health," but rather in the misalignment between the body's biological clock and the demands of daily life; this makes adhering to healthy heart behaviors more challenging.
The impact of staying up late on heart health is linked to the body's daily rhythm, or what is known as the biological clock, which operates on a cycle of about 24 hours, controlling sleep and wake times, and affecting vital functions, such as heart rate, blood pressure, metabolism, and stress hormone levels.
The new study was based on analyzing data from more than 300,000 middle-aged and elderly adults from the "UK Biobank," one of the largest health databases in the world. About 8% of the participants classified themselves as night owls, enjoying the highest levels of mental and physical activity during the late evening hours.
Conversely, about a quarter of the participants reported being early risers, while the rest fell into the intermediate category between the two patterns.
During a follow-up period that lasted 14 years, it became apparent that individuals who stayed up late at night were 16% more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke for the first time compared to others.
The results, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, showed that the cardiovascular health of night owls, especially women, was worse when assessed according to the eight standards set by the Association.
The researchers primarily attributed these results to the prevalence of unhealthy behaviors among night owls, such as smoking, lack of sleep, and an unbalanced diet.
