WE’VE all had the odd night of tossing and turning, where sleep seems like a far away and unattainable dream.
For some, struggling to nod off or jolting awake in the wee hours is a nightly occurrence.
A study has shown that people with insomnia could be at higher risk of a stroke – especially those under 50
Many bodies of research have linked the misery of insomnia to a whole host of complications, some of which can be deadly.
They range from diabetes and high blood pressure to depression and even heart attacks.
A new study published in the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology has now shown that people who experience sleep disruption and struggle to kip could be at higher risk of a stroke.
Researchers found that the risk was “much higher in people under 50 years old”.
But they noted that the study does not prove that insomnia symptoms can cause a stroke – it only shows an association between the two.
The team studied 31,126 people with an average age of 61 who had no history of a stroke at the beginning of the study.
Participants were asked how often they struggled to nod off, woke up in the night or woke up to early and couldn’t sleep again, as well as how often they felt rested in the morning.
They were scored between zero to eight on their answers, with a higher number indicating more severe symptoms.
In the nine years researchers followed participants, 2,101 of them had a stroke.
Researchers found that people who had more severe sleep troubles had an increased risk of suffering one.
Those who scored between one and four based on their answers about their sleep struggles had 16 per cent increased risk of stroke compared to people who didn’t struggle with insomnia.
Of the 19,149 people who scored up to four, 1,300 had a stroke, while 365 of the 6,282 with no sleep disruption suffered one.
Meanwhile, people who scored between five and eight on the sleep disruption scale were 51 per cent more likely to have a stroke, according to researchers.
There were 5,695 in that group, with 436 suffered the medical emergency.
The link between insomnia symptoms and stroke was stronger in participants under age 50, the researchers pointed out, as those who scored between five and eight on the sleep disruption scale had nearly four times the risk of stroke compared to people with no symptoms.
Of the 458 people under age 50 with five to eight symptoms, 27 had a stroke.
People age 50 or older with the same severity of symptoms had a 38 per cent increased risk of stroke compared to people with no symptoms.
Of the 654 people 50 and over with five to eight symptoms, 33 had a stroke.
Study author and member of the American Academy of Neurology, Wendemi Sawadogo, explained: “This difference in risk between these two age groups may be explained by the higher occurrence of stroke at an older age.
“The list of stroke risk factors such as high blood pressure and diabetes can grow as people age, making insomnia symptoms one of many possible factors,” he commented regarding why the link between sleep trouble and stroke grew weaker as participants aged.
“This striking difference suggests that managing insomnia symptoms at a younger age may be an effective strategy for stroke prevention. Future research should explore the reduction of stroke risk through management of sleeping problems.”
Dr Sawadogo said there is a range of therapies that can help people improve the quality of their sleep.
“So determining which sleep problems lead to an increased risk of stroke may allow for earlier treatments or behavioural therapies for people who are having trouble sleeping and possibly reducing their risk of stroke later in life,” he went on.
Based on the study, other factors that increased the risk of a stroke were diabetes, hypertension, heart disease and depression.
One of the research’s downside’s was that it relied on people’s own reports about their insomnia, so the information many not have been accurate.
According to the NHS, you have insomnia if you regularly:
find it hard to go to sleepwake up several times during the nightlie awake at nightwake up early and cannot go back to sleepstill feel tired after waking upfind it hard to nap during the day even though you’re tiredfeel tired and irritable during the dayfind it difficult to concentrate during the day because you’re tired
On average, adults need between seven and nine hours of sleep each night.
You can try and change your sleeping habits to ease your insomnia symptoms, by going to bed and waking up at the same time every day, reading instead of scrolling to wind down, making your bedroom dark and quiet and getting some exercise during the day.
But you should speak to a GP if changing your nighttime habits doesn’t help or you’ve had trouble sleeping for months.
What are the 4 symptoms of stroke you must know?
You can use the FAST method – which stands for Face, Arms, Speech, Time – to identify is someone is having a stroke:
F = Face drooping – if one side of a person’s face is dropped or numb then ask them to smile, if it’s uneven, you should seek medical help.
A = Arm weakness – if one arm is weak or numb then you should ask the person to raise both arms. If one arm drifts downwards, it could signify stroke
S = Speech difficulty – if a person’s speech is slurred this could be a sign of a stroke
T = Time to call 999 – if a person has the signs above then you need to call 999
Other stroke symptoms include:
sudden weakness or numbness on one side of the body
difficulty finding words
sudden blurred vision or loss of sight
sudden confusion, dizziness or unsteadiness
a sudden and severe headache
difficulty understanding what others are saying
difficulty swallowing
Ischaemic stroke, the most common form of the condition, occurs when a blood clot prevents the flow of blood and oxygen to the brain.
This is typically caused by arteries becoming narrower over time