Less than six hours sleep a night raises breast cancer risk by 60 per cent

[Connonym]

Source: Telegraph UK

Scientists believe sleep disruption interferes with the production of a hormone called melatonin, which could play an important role in protecting them from cancer.

The researchers in Japan recorded the lifestyle habits of almost 24,000 women aged 40 to 79 over an eight-year period.

Results showed that those who regularly had six hours' sleep or less every night were 62 per cent more likely to have breast cancer compared to those who slept seven hours.

Read more: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/health/3369361/Less-than-six-hours-sleep-a-night-raises-breast-cancer-risk-by-60-per-cent.html

---

On that note, I think maybe I should go to bed.

[MercutioATC]

1. Thank GOD my girlfriend's breasts are safe.

Any less than 10 hours of sleep is extremely rare for her.


Conversely, I average 5 or 6 hours of sleep per night, but I believe my gender makes me less susceptible to breast cancer...

[grannie4peace]

6. i thought because i nursed 4 children i was safe---NOT TRUE

[roguevalley]

20. it can also make you fat and diabetic.

[MercutioATC]

21. I'm neither so far...I'll keep my fingers crossed.

...and I'll have plenty of time to sleep once I'm retired...

[Mari333]

2. hmm. I take melatonin every night to sleep.

'Strenuous exercise, including scrubbing floors, can significantly reduce the chance of developing the disease, which affects 45,000 women in Britain every year.'

okay. if this was a study done on men's prostrates, would scrubbing floors be included in their exercise regime? :P

[Berry Cool]

4. Men would be prostrate on the floor. n/t

[catrose]

7. Maybe mowing the lawn?

Vigorous home repair?

Sounds very sexist. I wonder if an equivalent workout at the gym would provide the same protection?

[LisaLynne]

9. Nice catch.

There's still so much sexism in the way either the studies are conducted or reported. :crazy:

[Sequoia]

15. I take one of those myself.

Then I was up and can't go back to sleep because I worry so much about things. I hate worrying. I woke up this weekend and tried not to think about stuff but concentrated on "The Shinning" since I had watched the movie before I went to sleep. Not good to watch scary movies before bed.

[Ian David]

3. I didn't know breasts could sleep. n/t

[Maine-ah]

5. I haven't slept a whole night in almost 2 years.

x(

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

8. Feh. They'll just contradict themselves in the next study.

Eggs are good for you. Eggs are bad for you! Eggs don't make any difference at all, except for some people; and of those people, eggs are bad for some and good for others.

I just don't care anymore. We should just live our lives and not worry cuz none of us get out alive anyway.

[SmokingJacket]

10. Eggs are GOOD for you!

Or so says my flock of chickens. I believe them.

[bvar22]

11. I don't believe that this indicates causality.

In all probability, there are other lifestyle & genetic differences between those who sleep -6hrs vs those who sleep +7hrs.

[MissMillie]

12. very true, but

there are lots of good reasons to get a good night's sleep.... right?

[glitch]

17. Agreed. nt

[Le Taz Hot]

13. Oh, peachy.

And one of the side effects of menopause is insomnia.

[mopinko]

14. the telegraph prints a lot of dubious science and health articles, imho.

there is probably a high correlation. sleep is related to many, many low level disruptions in the body. but that stuff is complicated, and not well understood enough in general to make such statements.
link doesn't load, but i believe the first sentence has it backwards. low melatonin has been known to cause sleep problems, and supplementing it help in many, many cases. it was recommended to one of my kids by one of the best sleep doctors in illinois.

[gauguin57]

16. Lack of sleep is also linked to obesity.

psychology today had an article about how, when you don't get enough sleep, a hormone is triggered that makes you eat more. And, the more you eat (especially at night), the harder it will be for you to get a full night's sleep because of ANOTHER hormone that's triggered by overeating.

Get your zzzzzz's, fellow Dems! (after Tuesday, that is)

[Sabriel]

18. Yikes. I get about five a night.

And I don't see that changing any time soon.

[Vinca]

19. No healthcare increases the chance of death from breast cancer 100%. nt

[onlyadream]

22. It could be tied in with stress

if you're not sleeping well, or working late hours you could be living a life of stress. Stress does a number on the body and it changes hormone levels...so who knows.

[melody]

23. Now I'm going to lose sleep by worrying about losing sleep

I swear one day they'll find out that the #1 threat to health is health studies.