Sleeping at irregular hours can cause heart attacks and strokes, scientists have warned. According to researchers, even if you manage to complete eight to nine hours of nighttime sleeping, inconsistent timings increase the risk of deadly conditions by over a fifth.

After conducting a sleep audit of more than 70,000 people, researchers from the University of Ottawa, Canada, said sleep regularity is not relevant. "Our results suggest that sleep regularity may be more relevant than sufficient sleep duration in modulating major adverse cardiovascular event risk," said Dr. Jean-Philippe Chaput, lead researcher from the University of Ottawa.

"Findings from this study suggest that more attention needs to be paid to sleep regularity in public health guidelines and clinical practice due to its potential role in cardiovascular health," he added.

And so, scientists have concluded that the risks of a heart attack or stroke are strongly associated with irregular sleeping patterns. "It is not clear exactly how sleep benefits the heart, but research suggests that disturbed sleep is associated with higher levels of a protein called CRP,” warned Emily McGrath, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation.

"This is a sign of inflammation, the process linked with heart and circulatory disease," she continued.

Another study, conducted by UK Biobank, says data of more than 70,000 people was examined, which concluded that “Sleep can also have an indirect impact on heart health by affecting our lifestyle choices."

Those people, aged 40-79 years, who participated in the study had no history of significant heart issues like heart attacks and cardiac arrest and were monitored after wearing an activity tracker for seven days to record their sleep patterns. Experts calculated a Sleep Regularity Index score for each individual, ranging from 0 (indicating "very irregular" sleep) to 100 for a "perfectly regular sleep-wake pattern.".

Those with irregular sleep patterns have a 26 per cent higher risk of heart attack

Thereafter, conducting the study for eight years, researchers tracked health outcomes, focusing on conditions like heart failure or stroke, and examining the correlation with their sleep patterns. The findings revealed that, even after adjusting for variables like coffee and exercise levels, those with irregular sleep patterns had a 26 per cent higher risk of experiencing heart-related events compared to individuals with regular sleep habitHowever, those with moderately irregular sleep were found to be 8 per cent more likely to encounter these serious health issues.

Practicing good sleep habits helps improve your sleeping patterns. A few ways to regulate your sleep include:

Taking time for relaxation can help you sleep better. Experts say it is important to get over anxiety before sleeping as it can increase stress levels, disrupting and interrupting your sleep.

Apart from other health benefits, regular physical activity helps you sleep better. A simple way to reset your internal clock is to get regular exercise. Experts say when you work out, your muscles align with your circadian rhythm and produce more melatonin.

According to doctors, your circadian rhythm also responds well to your eating habits. For that, you must make sure to have an early dinner to avoid delaying sleep. Eating earlier will give your body enough time to digest the meal.

Establish a proper sleeping schedule, which you can stick to as one of the most important parts of improving your overall sleep quality. Sleep and wake up at the same time and stick to these times every day, even on weekends or days off.

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