Sleep Quality Affects Each Gender’s Blood Pressure Differently

You’re probably aware getting enough sleep is essential to overall health and well-being. Sleep helps lower blood pressure and inflammation, regulate metabolism and insulin uptake and reduce the risk of heart attacks and stroke. This is why sleep deprivation is linked to obesity, heart disease, type 2 diabetes, inflammation and weakened immunity.

For years, Americans have been told to get seven to eight (or nine) of sleep every night. While that’s still important, Northwestern University researchers found that other sleep pattern characteristics, such as the number of minutes sleeping in each stage of the sleep cycle and the number of times one wakes up during the night, may play a bigger role in blood pressure control and heart health than simply duration of sleep, according to a study published in The Journal of Clinical Hypertension.

Study results also showed that sleep quality affected women’s and men’s blood pressures differently. For example, women who slept longer in the deep sleep stage, tended to have lower blood pressure than women who slept less in this stage. As for men, those who woke up more frequently during the night had higher blood pressure than men who woke up less often. These study results are important, particularly for women, as researchers pointed out that high blood pressure is more strongly associated with heart attack in women than it is in men.

“High blood pressure increases the force of blood flow, damaging blood vessels, making them weak, stiff or narrow. This interferes with blood being delivered throughout the body including major organs like the heart, brain, eyes and kidneys,” says Dr. Andrea Klemes, chief medical officer, MDVIP. “When your blood pressure lowers, even while sleeping, it provides the heart and vascular system with some relief.”

The Connection Between Sleep and Blood Pressure

Here’s how your sleep habits influence your blood pressure.  

Sleep Duration
Sleep is a physiological process that allows the body to rest and restore itself. It affects a long list of bodily functions including balancing hormones including those involved in controlling blood pressure and blood pressure-related issues like stress and metabolism. Studies have found that people who sleep less than seven hours or more than nine hours were between 20 and 30 percent more likely to develop high blood pressure. And sleeping six or less hours can cause steep increases in blood pressure. This is why doctors recommend you sleep between seven and nine hours every night.  

Deep Sleep
Results also showed that sleeping less in the deep sleep phase elevated blood pressure, especially in women. Researchers didn’t find the same results in men. There are four stages of sleep. During the first two stages, your muscles relax and your brain activity, heart rate and breathing slowdown. But in the third stage – deep sleep -- your blood pressure begins dropping. This is why women who slept longer in the third stage tended to have lower blood pressure than women who slept less in deep sleep. A previous study also found a strong correlation between deep sleep and lowered blood pressure in women.

Not Sleeping through the Night
Men who wake up more often after falling asleep had higher blood pressure than men who woke up less often. This wasn’t seen in women. More research is needed to understand why this is occurring. One possible theory is that an underlying condition may be the root of the problem. Sleep apnea, for example, causes breathing interruptions that awaken sleepers and spike their high blood pressure. Nocturnal high blood pressure also can awaken people as they sleep. Both conditions are more common among men than women.

“You can be proactive about managing your blood pressure and getting good quality sleep, says Klemes. “However, it’s important to talk to your primary care physician about both conditions. They can provide lifestyle tips, order tests, prescribe medication and/or refer you to a specialist.”  

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