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Sleep Longer, Live Longer?

Extra hour of sleep linked to less calcification in arteries

By Peter Fearon, Newser Staff

Posted Dec 24, 2008 2:00 AM CST

(Newser) – An extra hour in bed may save your life, Web MD reports. Every extra hour of sleep over six hours a night has been linked to a significant drop in people's chances of developing a build-up of calcium in their arteries, potentially cutting their risk of heart attack, according to a new study.

"One hour more of sleep decreased the estimated odds of calcification by 33%," said the author of the study in the Journal of the American Medical Association. He doesn't have a theory about how sleep may reduce calcium levels in the arteries, and called for more research to explore the link.

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An extra hour's sleep can cut the build up of calcium in the arteries by 33%. (Photo: Business Wire)

Scans before and after a five-year sleep study showed patients who slept an extra hour had a 33% less chance of developing calcium build up in the arteries. (AP Photo/Mike Groll)

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One hour more of sleep decreased the estimated odds of calcification by 33%. - Christopher Ryan King, University
of Chicago.

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Sleep Longer, Live Longer?