This month marks Bed Month, which serves as a reminder of the importance of your bed for sleep quality. But can sleeping enough help you live longer? The science suggests sleep plays a key role in our longevity.
Bed Month is the perfect opportunity to slow down and make time for rest. With work, life and everything in between, it’s easy to neglect our sleep schedule, convincing ourselves that six hours of sleep provides all the benefits that eight hours does.
However, science says otherwise, with a study suggesting that as a driver of life expectancy, sleep stands out more than diet, exercise and loneliness. So, this Bed Month, we’re urging you to prioritise rest, as, in the long run, it can help ensure a longer, healthier life.
What does ”sleeping enough” actually mean?
While recommended sleep hours vary by age, most healthy adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night. According to the Sleep Foundation, anything less than that weakens the immune system, reduces job performance and increases the risk of accidents. And anything over that causes heart disease, diabetes and low energy. So, it’s important to find the middle ground when it comes to sleep.
However, it’s not just the duration of sleep that matters – sleep quality is important too, which refers to overall satisfaction with all aspects of the sleep experience. There are four attributes that determine the quality of sleep:
- Sleep efficiency – the percentage of time we’re actually asleep.
- Sleep latency – how long it takes us to fall asleep
- Sleep duration – the total amount of sleep we get during the night.
- Wake after sleep onset – time we spend awake after initially falling asleep.
The science: how sleep is linked to life expectancy
While it’s a known fact that sleep is important, a recent study by graduate students in the Sleep, Chronobiology and Health Laboratory of the OHSU School of Nursing, highlights the incredibly strong correlation between sleep and life expectancy.
This study was conducted across 3,141 counties in the US over a six-year period and measured how many people slept less than seven hours per night in each county. Researchers then compared this to how long people lived in the same counties, adjusting for other health and social factors and using advanced statistical methods to improve data reliability.
Another sleep study has found that men who get adequate sleep tend to live around five years longer than men who don’t. On the other hand, women who get adequate sleep tend to live two years longer. So, it’s fair to say that we might just be sleeping our way into a longer life, if done correctly.
Simple ways to sleep better and live better
There are a number of things we can do to improve our sleep and, therefore, live longer. Start by going to sleep and waking up at the same time, relaxing at least one hour before bed and cutting down on screen time. Additionally, it’s important to ensure that the room you sleep in is dark and quiet, to exercise regularly throughout the day, and to make sure your mattress, pillow, and bedding are comfortable.
For optimal sleep, do not smoke or drink alcohol, tea, or coffee before bed. Also, avoid heavy meals and leave at least four hours between exercise and bedtime.
Putting sleep first
As we mark Bed Month throughout March, it’s a chance to remember that sleep is a fundamental component of our overall wellbeing. Sleeping enough not only sets us up for a productive day ahead but also supports longer life expectancy, proving that when we sleep better, we truly live better (and longer!).
The best sleep happens on a high-quality mattress, so use our store finder and check out where you can test drive the Mammoth range of premium mattresses for better sleep and longer life.