Can More Than a 30-Minute Nap Make You Fat and Hypertensive?

Highlights:

A recent study suggests that people who take daytime naps of more than 30 minutes appear to have a higher risk of obesity and high blood pressure
However, people who take shorter naps are less likely to have high blood pressure
Longer naps may be a factor in these diseases because they can disturb nocturnal eating habits as well as sleep patterns, according to experts

Everyone loves a little nap in the middle of the day to refresh and reset their day. But can this nap put you at risk of obesity and diseases like heart disease and diabetes?

A recent study suggests that midday naps of more than 30 minutes may be linked to a higher body mass index, high blood pressure, heart disease, and diabetes.

However, the length of your naps matters. ‘Power naps’- a midday sleep session of 30 minutes or less, were less likely to have elevated blood pressure.

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston analyzed more than 3,000 adults from a Mediterranean community, where midday naps known as ‘siestas’ are widespread. The study was published in the journal Obesity.

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The Length of the Naps Matters

The researchers examined the relationship between siestas and their duration with obesity and metabolic syndrome.

People who took siestas of 30 minutes or longer were found to have a higher BMI, higher blood pressure, and other conditions associated with heart disease and diabetes when compared to those who did not nap.

Additionally, those taking short naps were less likely to show higher systolic blood pressure than those who took no naps.

“Not all siestas are the same,” Marta Garaulet, Ph.D., MS, a senior study author and a visiting professor in the Division of Sleep and Circadian Disorders at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, said in a statement. “The length of time, position of sleep, and other specific factors can affect the health outcomes of a nap.”

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Can Naps Make You Overweight?

Garaulet stated that the team previously conducted a study in the United Kingdom that discovered siestas were connected with an increased risk of obesity. The next step was to look at siestas in a country where midday naps were more prevalent.

“In this case, Spain, as well as how the length of time for siestas is related to metabolic health,” Garaulet said.

Obesity is a major health hazard that affects more than 1 billion individuals worldwide, according to the team.

Fat storage in the body is linked to how humans digest meals through metabolic processes. Researchers believe that studying how lifestyle choices, such as napping, alter these metabolic pathways could help them understand how habits influence health.

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Longer Naps Linked to Obesity and High Blood Pressure

Researchers studied the data from 3,275 adults in the Spanish region of Murcia.

They measured the baseline metabolic characteristics of participants at the University of Murcia and collected details regarding their naps and other lifestyle factors.

They divided the subjects into categories of no siestas, shorter than 30 minutes, and longer than 30 minutes.

Participants taking longer naps had a higher body mass index and were likelier to have metabolic syndrome (MetS) than those who did not take siestas.

The long nap group had higher waist circumference, fasting glucose levels, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) compared to the no-siesta group.

Longer siestas were linked to later nighttime eating and sleeping, more energy consumed during lunch, and smoking.

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The Link Between Obesity and Sleep

Previous studies have linked obesity with a lack of sleep. This article, however, offers knowledge about sleep and health risks in a context where taking naps is promoted for healthy people of all ages, while also taking into account other factors that may be connected, like nap length and eating habits.

It is also possible that longer naps are the result of health problems, not the other way around. It is possible that people with obesity sleep poorly at night and thus have a greater need for naps.

Previous studies have shown that weight loss interventions improve sleep quality. It may be interesting to examine whether sleep interventions – including managing nap length (and) improving nighttime sleep – improve weight.

Further Research is Needed

The researchers caution that it’s possible some factors may be a consequence of obesity and not siestas per se, as a previous study of data collected in the UK Biobank pointed to a causal relationship between napping and obesity, particularly abdominal obesity, which the authors call the most detrimental form.

The authors said they found a variety of statistically significant lifestyle factors mediating the association between siestas and health measures.

They call for future research into whether a short siesta is advantageous over a long one, particularly for those with habits such as delayed meals and sleep schedules, or for those who smoke.

This study shows the importance of considering siesta length and raises the question of whether short naps may offer unique benefits. Many organizations are realizing the benefits of short naps, mostly for work productivity, but also increasingly for general health.

Reference:

Lifestyle mediators of associations among siestas, obesity, and metabolic health - (https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/oby.23765)

Source-Medindia