ST. LOUIS (KMOX) — If you get less than six hours of sleep a night, you could be looking at some serious health concerns down the road, according to a new study from the American Heart Association.
This study found an increased risk of cancer and early death for those who sleep less than six hours a day and have other health issues — like high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and stroke.
"There's an increased risk of cardiovascular death and cardiovascular complications in patients that don't get enough sleep," said Dr. Thomas Siler, a sleep medicine physician with SSM Health Sleep Services and Medical Director of SSM Health St. Joseph Hospital St. Charles.
"There's also an increased risk of diabetes in patients that don't get enough sleep as well. So there are several complications that can occur in patients who don't get enough sleep. There's also an increased risk of obesity, as well as hypertension."
"People should probably try to get at least eight hours of sleep a day — but that number is different in different people," Dr. Siler tells KMOX. "There are some people that can't function if they don't get nine or ten hours of sleep a day — and there are some people who do perfectly well on seven hours of sleep. But it's important to try to put sleep on your schedule so you try to do it on a regular basis."
Dr. Siler's sleep tips include not working out before bedtime — and staying off your electronic devices when it's time to go to bed.
"People don't want to put down their cell phones when it's time to go to bed," said Dr. Siler. "The other problem with those types of devices — at least most of them emit light at a frequency that actually tends to promote wakefulness — rather than sleep."
The bottom line, according to Dr. Siler, is to make sleep a priority.
"That's the problem that patients have these days, sleep is not a priority," said Dr. Siler. "Some people say 'I'm gonna do what I'm gonna do — and I'll get whatever sleep I can.' The best way to get good sleep is to schedule sleep — so that you have a regular bedtime and a regular time to get up. Now for some patients, that's just not possible because of their work schedule. If you are rotating shifts or working a job where sometimes you work in the morning and other times you work in the evening, it can be difficult to do that. If possible, though, it is best to set a time that you are going to go to bed and set a time that you are going to get up."