Staying Up Late May Increase Your Heart Attack And Stroke Risk; Here's How

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death across the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 19.8 million people died from cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in 2022. Among these, 85% of them due to heart attack and stroke. Both heart attack and stroke can be caused due to various reasons, and these include your diet, physical activity, sleep and more. A new study has found that 'night owls' or people who go to bed late may have an increased risk of cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke. The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

For this study, researchers analysed the role of chronotypes in heart disease. They compared people who are more active in the evening (night owls) with those who are active in the morning (larks) and those who are somewhere in the middle (intermediates). The team analysed the relationship between chronotype, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and common risk factors like nicotine use, sleep, and physical activity levels. Chronotypes are categories that describe people's sleep-wake patterns based on their internal biological clock.

Night Owls Face Higher Heart Disease Risk

The team theorised that being a night owl may be a "marker for underlying circadian misalignments," as it disrupted daily wake-sleep cycles. Previous studies have found how the difference between the natural light-dark cycle and a person's body clock can cause cardiometabolic issues. This is why shift workers have an increased risk of heart disease and metabolic issues.

The researchers also say that most of these risk factors can be modified, which means you can make certain changes that can help to improve your heart health. Speaking to Healthline, Dr. Sina Kianersi, DVM, PhD, a postdoctoral research fellow at Brigham and Women's Hospital/Harvard Medical School and first author of the study, said, "The key point is not that chronotype is 'good' or 'bad,' but that being a 'night owl' often travels with a less favorable heart-health profile."

For the study, the researchers took data from the UK Biobank, which is a long-term study carried out in the United Kingdom. The study included 322,777 adults aged 39-74 without known cardiovascular disease.

What Chronotypes Mean For Your Sleep And Heart Health

The chronotype of the participants was assessed using their answer to the following question: "Do you consider yourself to be? Definitely a 'morning' person; More a 'morning' than 'evening' person; More an 'evening' than a 'morning' person; Definitely an 'evening' person; Do not know; Prefer not to answer."

Most of the participants (67%) said that they were an intermediate. Nearly one in four identified as a morning person, and only 8% identified as night owls. Participants were also assigned a heart health score based on the Life Essential 8 which is a framework developed by the American Heart Association to define cardiovascular risk using eight modifiable factors. These include stopping smoking, being more active, getting healthy sleep, managing weight, controlling cholesterol, managing blood sugar, managing blood pressure and eating better.

Key Study Findings

The researchers followed the participants for nearly 14 years and found that the night owls had a 79% higher risk of poor cardiovascular health when compared to the intermediate chronotype. This also means night owls had a 16% higher risk than the intermediate group. They also had the worst scores in six out of the eight risk factors that make up Life's Essential 8.

Simple Changes To Protect Your Heart If You're A Night Owl

Researchers say that the increased risk of CVD is not because of an individual's chronotype, but due to the unhealthy behaviours of the night owls. Kianersi said, "If someone identifies as a night owl, our findings suggest it is especially important to pay attention to overall cardiovascular health. For individual risk, the biggest drivers are still the basics, such as blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, nicotine exposure, physical activity, body weight, diet, and sleep health."

Kianersi in an email to CNN said, "Focus on the basics: aim for enough sleep, keep sleep and wake times as consistent as possible, and try to get some morning light exposure. Regular physical activity also matters, and it helps to stay on top of routine checks for blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood sugar. And if someone smokes, quitting remains one of the most powerful steps for protecting long-term heart health."

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