People who get less sleep consistently are more likely to die earlier

Question

Sleep is extremely important for the human body. Studies have found that those who get less than six hours of sleep consistently are more likely to die earlier than those who get more sleep.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/may/05/sleep-study-premature-death

Comments

I think that this claim can be somewhat true. Sleep is a key part of keeping the human body healthy. The body is very reactive when it's not getting something it needs to survive. You aren't going to die because you miss a night of sleep but it is more likely for you to feel bad. The mind and gut are very connected for example in the Harvard Gazette they talk about this phenomenon. Not getting enough sleep can poorly affect the gut's health which is important for the body to function. Bad gut health can equal bad health in general which in the long term can be bad and possibly lead to an earlier death. “We took an unbiased approach and searched throughout the body for indicators of damage from sleep deprivation. We were surprised to find it was the gut that plays a key role in causing death,” said senior study author Dragana Rogulja, assistant professor of neurobiology in the Blavatnik Institute at HMS. The National Institute of Health also has something to say about this. They did a study and found that "People reporting consistently sleeping 5 hours or less per night should be regarded as a higher risk group for all-cause mortality."

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2864873/#:~:text=People%20reporting%20consistently%20sleeping%205,group%20for%20all%2Dcause%20mortality.

https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/06/study-reveals-guts-role-in-causing-death-by-sleep-deprivation/

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Studies show that people who consistently get too little sleep are more likely to die earlier. Research from Harvard found that sleep-deprived fruit flies built up harmful molecules in their bodies, which led to them dying sooner. However, when scientists gave them antioxidants to remove these molecules, the flies lived longer, proving that lack of sleep was what caused the early death. Another study from Harvard-affiliated Brigham found that older adults who slept fewer than five hours per night were twice as likely to develop dementia and had a higher risk of dying compared to those who got seven to eight hours of sleep. These findings show how important good sleep is for living a longer life.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/18/health/sleep-dementia-early-death-wellness/index.html
https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2020/06/study-reveals-guts-role-in-causing-death-by-sleep-deprivation/

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The idea that consistently getting less than six hours of sleep can increase the risk of early death is supported by solid research from various sources. The Guardian article explains that people who sleep too little are 12% more likely to die prematurely. This study tracked over 1.3 million participants matches with findings from other sources. This research confirms that insufficient sleep is linked to serious health risks such as heart disease and metabolic disorders. Both not sleeping enough and sleeping too much can have negative effects on your overall health, so getting around 6 to 8 hours is important to live a healthy long life.

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Studies have shown that getting little sleep consistently does increase your likelihood of dying at a young age. The Guardian article talked about how they tracked multiple participants to get this data and it is interesting to read about.

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You are absolutely correct in emphasizing the importance of sleep for human health.  Multiple studies have demonstrated that often obtaining less than six hours of sleep can result in major health issues like diabetes, heart disease, and stroke, supporting the link between inadequate sleep and early death. Sleep is necessary for the body to restore itself and sustain important processes, as you mentioned. The study supports your claim that getting too little sleep impairs immunity and raises the likelihood of developing chronic illnesses, which can drastically reduce life expectancy. It's obvious that maintaining long-term health and wellbeing depends on obtaining enough sleep. I also read the source and love how you made sure the source was authentic and based your claim off correct statements.
I also checked this source as a double check and you're absolutely correct: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2864873/

Answer 1

Persistent sleep deprivation does increase the risk of dying young. The Guardian writes about a large sleep study tracked for 25 years, out of the 1.3 million subjects tracked, short sleepers slept less than six hours a night, and happened to die earlier than those who slept for seven or eight hours each night. Long-term sleep deprivation has been associated with deprivation has been associated with serious health conditions that potentially shorten one's life span.

Source:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2010/may/05/sleep-study-premature-death

Answer 2

Regularly getting too little sleep is linked to a higher chance of dying young. Both short and extended sleep durations have been associated with increased mortality rates, according to research. According to a systematic review and meta-analysis, people who said they slept fewer than seven hours a night were more likely to die from all causes.  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2864873/ 

In a similar vein, a big study with over 1.1 million participants found that a significantly higher risk of death was linked to both short (less than 6 hours) and extended (8 hours or more) sleep lengths. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11825133/

A lack of sleep can also result in injuries, poor productivity, mental and physical health issues, and even an increased risk of death, according to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute. https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/sleep-deprivation

Answer 3

Yes, it is true that getting less sleep can put you at higher risk for mortality. To be specific, the National Library of Medicine states that those who are "consistently sleeping 5 hours or less per night should be regarded as a higher risk group for all-cause mortality", which proves this claim to be true. In order to double check this, I looked at an article by Harvard's Division of Sleep Medicine, which also stated that people who sleep for 5 hours or less a night could have up to a 15 percent increased mortality risk rate.

 

Sources:

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2864873/#:~:text=People%20reporting%20consistently%20sleeping%205,group%20for%20all%2Dcause%20mortality.

https://sleep.hms.harvard.edu/education-training/public-education/sleep-and-health-education-program/sleep-health-education-86

Answer 4

While this article is more than 14 years old, the statistics stay relevant to this day. This is true. The article comes from The Guardian, which is a well known trustworthy news site. Those who generally slept for less than six hours a night were 12% more likely to experience a premature death over a period of 25 years than those who consistently got six to eight hours' sleep. The facts stated come come from 16 different studies conducted over Europe, the US, and Asia over 25 years. After researching more on this topic I found that not only does sleeping less decrease lifespan, but it can also increase risk of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity. 

Answer 5

This claim is true, while I may argue that the title of the claim is a bit clickbaity by being vague on what less sleep is and what the percentage is the claim is true. The article states how consistently getting less than 6 hours of sleep causes sleep deprivation which prevents your body from recovering and resetting to defend the immune system making you more prone to getting sick. Other negative effects of sleep deprivation include negative effects on the cardiovascular, immune, metabolic, and nervous systems, which in turn increases the chances of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. The website also does a good job crediting their course the Warwick University research center in their research that proves these claims.

I would say after reading this claim and the website that it is a little bit exaggerated but true. While it is true that sleep deprivation can cause premature death, this premature death is at most 7 years and is phrased to sound much bigger. Also, the research conducted was tested over a 25-year window meaning that a premature death up to 7 years early is caused by a consistent 6 hours or less of sleep over 25 years. Sleep is very important but don't be scared to pull an occasional all-nighter if you need to do work or study.

https://warwick.ac.uk/newsandevents/pressreleases/short_sleep_increases/

Answer 6

I believe the claim that people who sleep less are more likely to die earlier is true. I liked and agreed with the article you provided, which suggested that sleeping less than six hours per night may lead to early death. Despite it being more than a decade old, recent studies have continued to support the association between short sleep duration and increased mortality risk.

A study published in Frontiers in Public Health found that both short (<5 hours) and long (>9 hours sleep durations are significantly associated with elevated risks of all-cause mortality. Specifically, individuals sleeping less than 5 hours had a 1.40 times higher risk, while those sleeping more than 9 hours had a 1.74 times higher risk, compared to those sleeping 7-8 hours per night. 

Additionally, research in JAMA Network Open indicated that younger men sleeping less than 7 hours per night faced a statistically significant increase in all-cause mortality risk. This association was not observed in older men, suggesting that age may influence the impact of sleep duration on mortality. 

Lastly, beyond duration, maintaining a consistent sleep schedule has been identified as a crucial factor for longevity. A study highlighted in Real Simple emphasized that individuals with stable sleep patterns, averaging around seven hours per night, had better health outcomes and a higher likelihood of successful aging. 

While the 2010 article's claim about the dangers of sleeping less than six hours aligns with more recent findings, it's essential to consider both sleep duration and regularity. Both insufficient and excessive Sleep are associated with increased mortality risks. Striving for 7-8 hours of consistent sleep per night appears to be optimal for health and longevity.

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/public-health/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2022.880276/full

https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2783717

https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-024-20524-7

Answer 7

People who get less sleep consistently are in fact putting themselves at more of a risk for a wide range of health issues that could potentially come there way which could, yes, maybe even result in an earlier death than if they would've had a healthy sleep schedule. 

An article by sleepfoundation.org goes into detail about how there are some somewhat minor effects caused by lack of sleep such as weakened immune system and energy loss. But if those already sound serious it can get way worse. Consistent bad sleep can also result in higher risk for heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure, memory loss, and more. Not to mention there are also negative impacts on ones mental health such as increased depression and it is "even associated with suicidality."

https://www.sleepfoundation.org/sleep-faqs/can-you-die-from-not-sleeping

Another article: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2864873/ 

Goes into detail agreeing with this claim that consistent lack of sleep can increase risk of death in the long run however I find it interesting they also said "Both short and long duration of sleep are significant predictors of death in prospective population studies." 

So in the long run when it comes to sleep in general it is very important to have a balance in your sleep schedule as it can in fact result in health issues that can actually lead to an earlier death. 

Answer 8

This claim can be supported by the National Library of Medicine, a scholarly source.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2864873/

The source cited, though it is dated, remains consistent with the NCBI about a lack of sleep correlating with an increased mortality rate. Sleep is known to be a very important bodily function and the NCBI conducted several studies which supported this claim. Therefore this claim is true