If you regularly sleep less than 6.5 hours—or make a habit of sleeping more than eight hours—your organs may be aging faster than they should, a recent study warns.
The Narrow Sleep Window Best for Health
The study drew on self-reported data from 500,000 participants in the UK Biobank and used 23 computer models called “aging clocks” to estimate how quickly different organs were aging relative to a person’s actual age.
These clocks were built using structural data from medical imaging, organ-specific proteins, and molecules found in the blood. They can provide personalized information about aging in specific organs, including the brain, heart, and lungs.
The findings, recently published in Nature, showed that 6.4 to 7.8 hours of sleep was healthiest for women, while 6.4 to 7.7 hours was healthiest for men.
Sleep Habits and Chronic Disease
Both too little and too much sleep were associated with faster aging across nearly every organ—supporting the idea that sleep plays a central role in maintaining what Wen described as “a coordinated brain–body network, including metabolic balance and a healthy immune system.”
The study linked abnormal sleep duration to a range of medical conditions, including obesity, Type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and irregular heartbeats. It also found connections to respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma, as well as gastrointestinal problems such as acid reflux and gastritis.
Increased Risk of Late-Life Depression
Wen and his team found that too little sleep was associated with mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. Researchers also found that sleeping too much could influence depression risk through changes in brain and fat-tissue aging.
Dr. Alex Dimitriu, who is board-certified in psychiatry and sleep medicine and was not involved in the study, told The Epoch Times these findings confirm what he’s observed in his practice: Both too little and too much sleep are associated with worse health outcomes.
“It reinforces that seven to eight hours is the sweet spot for most adults,” he said. “It’s a modifiable risk factor we can control.”
Dimitriu said that it’s also good to know that seven hours may be sufficient for most adults.
Sleep Quality Matters as Much as Duration
Sleep quality and sleep duration are both essential for overall health, Chelsie Rohrscheib, head sleep expert and neuroscientist at Wesper, a clinical-grade sleep testing and management platform, who was not involved in the study, told The Epoch Times.
“Poor sleep in either area can increase the risk for numerous chronic health conditions while reducing quality of life,” she said.
- Chronic daytime sleepiness
- Difficulty concentrating
- Memory problems
- Irritability
- Low mood
- Reduced performance at work or school
Dimitriu recommended protecting what he calls your “sleep window” with dim lighting, reduced stimulation, and a quiet pre-bed routine.
“Aiming for eight hours usually gets you about seven quality hours,” he said, and, according to this study, that is right where you want to be for the best aging outcomes.