Got to wake up early ever day for work on weekdays? Excited for sleeping in on the weekend? Sorry to break it to you but a recent study just concluded that sleeping in on weekends is bad for your health.
A research from the University of Pittsburgh, published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, found that changes in sleeping patterns during the week can increase the risks of heart disease, diabetes and other diseases. The study looked through the link between an individual's natural sleep patterns and the sleep schedule imposed by work and other responsibilities which they coined as "social jetlag". They reviewed the negative health effects of this "social jetlag" in healthy people and found significant results.
The study involved 447 healthy participants with either part or full time work shifts for at least 25 hours a week in which 85% went to sleep later and woke up later on their weekends. The researchers found out that the participants with the biggest shifts in their sleeping schedule had worse cholesterol, a higher BMI and a larger waist circumference. Physical activity and diet were taken into account.
Patricia Wong, a researcher from the University of Pittsburgh, stated that the social jetlag contributed to metabolic problems which can also contribute to the development of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
As a result of the study, Wong also suggested that workplace education may probably help employees and their families to make more informed decisions about settling their work schedules and encourage employers to enforce policies in line with this concern.
Larger studies about the same issue, sleeping habits, will be done in the future and if they show similar results it may help support the hypothesis that changes to sleeping habits could help people lead healthier and better lives.
