Doctor explains why just 5 hours of sleep per night can lead to 'an early death'
Anish Vij
Featured Image Credit: TikTok/@drdanfriederich / Tetra Images/Getty
Our parents are always telling us how important it is to get our 'eight hours' of sleep per night, and they might just have a point.
Doctor Dan Friederich has warned us of the potentially deadly consequences of having between four and five hours of sleep. Watch below:
"Do you think that you can survive on only four to five hours of sleep every night?" Dr Friederich asks his followers.
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The award-winning eye care doctor from St. Louis, Missouri, insists that not getting enough sleep could lead to an 'early death'.
"And so studies have shown again and again that the optimal amount of sleep is between six and eight hours a night, preferably at least seven," he explained in a now-viral video posted on his TikTok page.
"If you go more than nine hours it's also bad for your health. But sleeping less than five is the worst thing you could possibly be doing.
"Increased mortality all across the board, cardiovascular disease, all types of diseases are associated with sleeping that little."
Research from 2022 has also suggested that having less than five hours sleep a night can increase the chances of an older person's risk of premature death by a quarter.
The findings - which were conducted by the University College London - were based on 7,864 people over the age of 50 in the UK.
Lead author Dr Severine Sabia said: "Multimorbidity (the presence of 2 or more long-term health conditions) is on the rise in high income countries and more than half of older adults now have at least two chronic diseases.
"This is proving to be a major challenge for public health, as multimorbidity is associated with high healthcare service use, hospitalisations and disability.
"As people get older, their sleep habits and sleep structure change. However, it is recommended to sleep for seven to eight hours a night - as sleep durations above or below this have previously been associated with individual chronic diseases.
"Our findings show that short sleep duration is also associated with multimorbidity."
The doctor has provided us with some guidance on how to get a better night's sleep.
"To ensure a better night's sleep, it is important to promote good sleep hygiene, such as making sure the bedroom is quiet, dark and a comfortable temperature before sleeping," he said.
"It's also advised to remove electronic devices and avoid large meals before bedtime. Physical activity and exposure to light during the day might also promote good sleep."
Sometimes, only sometimes, our parents do actually know what they're are talking about.