DOCTOR’S NOTE

HAVING a good sleep pattern reduces the risk of heart disease and stroke by 34%, a study suggests.

Researchers assessed the impact on the risk of heart or blood vessel problems from the combination of sleep patterns and genetic susceptibility to cardiovascular disease.

Scientists created a new healthy sleep score by asking participants if they were morning or evening people, how long they slept for, and whether they suffered from insomnia, snoring or frequent, excessive daytime sleepiness.

The healthy sleep score ranged from 0 to 5, with 5 being the healthiest sleep pattern.

A score of 5 represented a morning person, who slept between seven and eight hours a night, without insomnia, snoring or daytime sleepiness.

Compared with those with a sleep score of 0-1, participants with a score of 5 had a 35% reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, and a 34% reduced risk of both heart disease and stroke, according to the study published in the European Heart Journal.