Take a Nap – It’s Good for Your Heart

If you want to be really good to your heart, you should take regular naps. This is the advice of researchers of a new study published in the latest issue of Journal of Internal Medicine, a publication of the American Medical Association.

In one of the largest studies of its kind carried out by researchers at the University of Athens Medical School, nearly 24,000 Greek adults were followed for a period of over six years. Most of the participants were in their 50s. 792 men and women died during the follow-up period; 133 of them due to heart disease. Roughly 50% of the subjects were regular nappers.

The researchers found that as compared to those who did not take a nap, people who took at least three naps during the week of about 30 minutes each had nearly 37% lower risk of a fatal heart attack or dying due to other heart problems. The strongest evidence of this benefit was observed in working men who took a nap on the job. Researchers believe the benefit might be on account of the naps reducing stress, a common component of most jobs.

“It is likely that women reap similar benefits from napping, but not enough of them died during the study to be sure,” said Dr. Dimitrios Trichopoulos, the study’s senior author and a researcher at Harvard University and the University of Athens Medical School. Only 48 women out of the total studied died due to heart problems. Of these only 6 were working women. In comparison, heart disease killed 85 men including 28 working men.

“We interpret our findings as indicating that among healthy adults, siesta, possibly on account of stress-releasing consequences, may reduce coronary mortality,” lead author Androniki Naska said. According to the study findings, even the occasional nap can give heart benefits as compared to no napping; however the benefits are not significant enough.

The study was markedly different from previous similar studies that gave mixed findings regarding the effect of naps on heart health. For the first time, it took into account the effects from smoking, diet and exercise. Care was also taken to ensure that none of the study subjects were ill at the time the study began.

“This is an important finding because the siesta habit is common in many parts of the world, including the Mediterranean region and Central America,” Naska said.

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