Sleep deprivation: A cause of high blood pressure?

Possibly. Recent studies suggest that sleep deprivation may increase the risk of high blood pressure (hypertension).

An October 2007 study in the medical journal Hypertension suggests that women who routinely sleep fewer than seven hours a night may have an increased risk of developing high blood pressure. The study followed 10,300 adults between the ages of 35 and 55 for five years. When compared with women who typically slept seven hours each night, women who slept six hours a night were 42 percent more likely to develop high blood pressure. Women who routinely slept no more than five hours had a 31 percent higher risk. The study didn't show a relationship between sleep deprivation and high blood pressure in men.

A May 2006 report also published in Hypertension further suggests that long-term sleep deprivation increases the risk of hypertension. Researchers analyzed data for 4,810 participants, who were between the ages of 32 and 86 years old. Among participants between the ages of 32 and 59 years, those who slept less than six hours a night had more than double the risk of high blood pressure than did those who slept more than six hours a night. This association was not significant in participants older than 59 years.

According to some researchers, people who sleep for only short periods — less than six hours a night — increase their average 24-hour blood pressure and heart rate. Over time, this may lead to persistent high blood pressure.

Additional studies are needed to better understand the role of sleep deprivation in high blood pressure. But these studies suggest that increasing the amount and quality of sleep may play a role in the treatment and prevention of high blood pressure.