SNOOZE OR LOSE –
April 4, 2023 – The Biobank study set out to see whether the poor sleep and insomnia people with asthma often report, has an impact on the risk of having asthma or not, and whether quality sleep reduce that risk.
They considered healthy sleep patterns to include seven to nine hours of sleep a night, no or rare bouts of insomnia, no snoring and feeling alert during the day AKA not needing to nap.
Respiratory health was tracked up to the date of receiving an asthma diagnosis, a participant’s death, or until 31 March 2017, whichever of the three came first.
The researchers assessed more than 450,000 adults aged 38-73 across nine years. Overall, participants who had a high genetic risk for asthma were found to be 47 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with the condition, and if they had poor sleep to boot, they were 55 per cent more likely.
Asthma can cause breathing problems and often starts in childhood. While it’s manageable day-to-day with inhalers, sufferers can experience complications, and there is a risk of severe, life-threatening asthma attacks.
