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Too little sleep may lead to shortened life – Metro US

Too little sleep may lead to shortened life

Those late nights at the office could kill you, AFP reports. According to a new study out of Britain’s University of Warwick, people who consistently get fewer than six hours of sleep a night are at increased risk for premature death.

Researchers found that getting two or more hours under the daily recommended eight hours of sleep a night could lead to a 12 percent rise in before-your-prime death.

The findings, published in the journal Sleep, included a multitude of international studies, including a sample size of more than 1.3 million people.

“If you sleep little, you can develop diabetes, obesity, hypertension and high cholesterol,” said researcher Francesco Cappuccio, head of Warwick’s Sleep, Health and Society Programme.

Cappuccio calls sleep scarcity a public health issue, arguing that an overbearing work culture contributes to our poor sleeping schedules.

Researchers also found evidence linking oversleep and early death. According to the study, more than nine hours a night could lead to heightened risk.