Too little sleep could cause serious damage to your kidneys, warns health study.
UPDATED BY ANDREW GREGORY
If you only get five hours or less your risk of renal failure goes up 65%, say experts – further proof of the benefits of a good night’s rest
Stay healthy: It’s important to get a good night’s sleep
Sleeping for five a hours or less significantly raises your risk of kidney failure, a study suggests.
The dramatic findings from US researchers show how vital it is for your kidneys to get enough sleep.
Experts at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts, studied 4,000 people over a decade.
They found those sleeping five hours a night were 65% more likely to experience a rapid decline in kidney function compared with those getting seven to eight hours a night.
The findings were presented at a major medical conference in San Diego.
Dr Ciaran Joseph McMullan, who led the research, said: “This is the first prospective study to find that shorter sleep duration is associated with a more rapid decline in renal function.
“The findings of this paper coupled with research from others suggest that renal physiology may be adversely effected by disruption in sleep, including sleep restriction.”
One in three of us suffers from poor sleep , with stress, computers and working long hours often blamed.
Experts previously knew that regular poor sleep puts you at risk of serious medical conditions, including obesity, heart disease and diabetes .
It can also shorten your life expectancy.
But its link with chronic kidney disease was, up until now, unclear.
Now the US study suggests that kidney function may be compromised when your sleep is disrupted.
Most of us need around eight hours of good-quality sleep a night to function properly – but some need more and some less.
This new study suggests five hours or less can have serious effects on your kidney health.
The main role of the kidneys is to filter waste products from the blood before converting them into urine.
The kidneys also help maintain blood pressure , help heart and muscles function properly, keep bones healthy and stimulate production of red blood cells.
This study is the first to suggest that poor sleep or a lack of it can reduce the ability of the kidney to carry out these functions in the long-term.
Do you often get less than 5 hours sleep a night?
