Your Health by Dr. Rallie McAllister

Here's a little good news for daytime snoozers: Taking a brief siesta in the middle of the day may dramatically lower your risk of death due to heart disease. The results of a recent study published in The Archives of Internal Medicine revealed that midday napping reduced coronary mortality by at least a third among healthy adults.

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Athens Medical School in Greece and the Harvard School of Public Health, involved nearly 24,000 healthy Greek men and women between the ages of 20 and 86. At the beginning of the study, the participants were asked if they took a midday siesta, and if so, how often and how long they usually slept.

Participants also gave information about their level of physical activity and their dietary habits. Of the 793 deaths that occurred during the six-year follow up, 133 were attributed to heart disease.

After analyzing the data, the researchers found that participants who took naps at least three times a week for an average of at least 30 minutes were 37 percent less likely to die from heart disease than those who never napped.

Employed males appeared to derive the greatest benefits. Working men who napped had a 64 percent lower risk of heart-related death than those who abstained from daytime dozing.

The researchers concluded that napping may boost cardiovascular health by relieving stress, which often contributes to heart problems. Previous research has demonstrated a strong correlation between napping and improved heart health.

In the Mediterranean region and in several Latin American countries where siestas are popular, the risk of dying from heart disease is typically lower than in the United States, where napping is less common. Among American men and women, heart disease is currently the leading cause of death.

There's no doubt that most Americans could use a little extra shut-eye. Over the past century, we've shortened our average sleep time by about two hours a night.

While the average adult requires seven to nine hours of sleep each night for optimum health, many of us are getting just six hours or less. All this missed slumber ultimately leads to sleep deprivation, which can cause some serious problems.

Several studies have shown that skimping on sleep can weaken the immune system.

The result is an increased susceptibility to minor infections and major illnesses, ranging from colds and flu to cancer.

Sleep deprivation has been shown to contribute to the development of diabetes and obesity. Lack of sufficient shut-eye not only interferes with the body's ability to regulate blood sugar, it also lowers blood levels of leptin, a hormone that plays a key role in appetite control.

As you might suspect, the most immediate and noticeable effects of sleep deprivation are daytime drowsiness and fatigue. If you manage to stay awake, you're likely to suffer from impaired memory and concentration, not to mention irritability.

While many Americans rely on a midday dose of caffeine to boost sagging energy levels, this strategy often backfires. Drinking coffee and colas during the day can lead to insomnia and poor-quality sleep at night, worsening the problem of sleep deprivation.

Nodding off unexpectedly can cause problems, but a planned power nap is a great way to make up for lost sleep. Swedish researchers studying the effects of napping on daytime alertness measured the performance of volunteers in three situations: after a full night's sleep, after four hours of sleep and a short nap, and after four hours of sleep with no nap.

The subjects who slept four hours with no nap scored the lowest on tests of alertness, while those who slept four hours and then napped scored just as well as those who got a full night's sleep. Mood, memory, and reaction time also improved after a short daytime doze.

The best time for a siesta is early or mid-afternoon, when energy levels naturally wane. If you want to avoid feeling groggy and sluggish after awakening, you should limit your downtime to 30 minutes or less.

When you nap for less than a half hour, you don't have a chance to plunge into a deep sleep. As a result, you'll snooze lightly and wake up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated.

The next time you feel your eyelids drooping, you might want to consider taking a short siesta. Spending just a few minutes of your day in slumber could add a few extra years to your life.

Rallie McAllister, M.D., M.P.H., is a family physician in Kingsport, Tenn., and author of "Healthy Lunchbox: The Working Mom's Guide to Keeping You and Your Kids Trim." Her Web site is http://www.rallieonhealth.com. To find out more about Rallie McAllister, M.D., and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2007 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.

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