- Insomnia is a disorder characterized by experiencing difficulty falling or staying asleep, or waking up too early.
- Past studies have linked inadequate sleep to several health conditions, all of which can negatively impact a person’s life expectancy.
- A new study found that insufficient sleep had a more significant impact on decreased life expectancy than other lifestyle factors, such as diet, physical activity, and social isolation.
If you struggle getting a good night’s sleep, you’re not alone. Researchers estimate that about 16% of the world’s population lives with insomnia, while a recent survey conducted by the National Sleep Foundation found that six out of every 10 adult Americans report they don’t get enough sleep.
Past studies have linked inadequate sleep to several health conditions that can negatively impact a person’s quality of life and life expectancy, including cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, depression, anxiety, gastrointestinal issues, and dementia.
“Sleep plays a vital role in nearly every biological process within our body, yet it is still one behavior that I think we commonly take for granted,” Andrew McHill, PhD, associate professor and director of the Sleep, Chronobiology, and Health Laboratory in the School of Nursing at Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), told Medical News Today.
“It is something that is easy to put off until the weekend or deprioritize based on work or social events, but getting shorter sleep truly has ramifications for our Health and wellbeing,” McHill added.
He is the senior author of a new study recently published in the journal Sleep Advances, which found that insufficient sleep had a more significant impact on decreased life expectancy than other lifestyle factors, such as diet,
For this study, researchers analyzed data from the
“While sitting in on a research advocacy meeting with government officials, someone mentioned that if you want your research to truly make an impact, you need to look at how it affects people in your local community and state,” McHill recalled. “It got me to thinking, ‘how do people in Oregon sleep?’ and it set me and my team off on an adventure.”
“We first examined the relationship between insufficient sleep and [the] number of health outcomes in Oregon, to which there were robust relationships, particularly with life expectancy, which was somewhat surprising that the relationship was so strong,” he continued.
“So we thought, let’s look at other states. And time and time again, when we analyzed the relationship between rates of insufficient sleep and life expectancy at the county level, regardless of state, there were strong relationships across the country.”
– Andrew McHill, PhD
At the study’s conclusion, McHill and his team discovered that when compared to common behaviors associated with life expectancy — such as diet, physical activity, and social connection — inadequate sleep was a more powerful driver of lower life expectancy than any other factor other than
“These findings really highlight the importance of sleep among all other behaviors that we commonly think of being essential for health — the food we eat, the air we breathe, or how much we exercise,” McHill said.
Additionally, researchers found that not getting enough sleep was significantly negatively linked with life expectancy in most U.S. states from 2019-2025.
“These findings really deliver the message that regardless of where you live, whether it be rural, urban, north, south, east, or west, sleep plays a vital role on our Health and wellbeing,” McHill emphasized.
“Moreover, because we had multiple years of data, these findings also highlight that even when faced with extreme circumstances (i.e., COVID pandemic), sleep still plays a key role in our health,” he added.
“We are hoping to really dive into the specific reasons as to why sleep is associated with shorter life expectancy,” McHill continued. “We are currently doing this through tightly-controlled in-laboratory studies funded by the National Institutes of Health, but we are also hoping to get into the local community and different pockets across America to identify specific mechanisms by which sleep impairs Health.”
MNT had the opportunity to speak with Pakkay Ngai, MD, medical director for the Sleep-Wake Center at Palisades Medical Center in New Jersey, about this study.
“As a doctor who regularly treats patients struggling with sleep, my first reaction to this study is one of profound validation, yet also surprise at the sheer magnitude of the findings,” Ngai, who was not involved in this research, commented.
“In the medical community, we have long understood that sleep is a critical pillar of health, affecting everything from mood and cognitive function to the immune system and cardiovascular health,” he told us.
“However, to see that insufficient sleep outweighs the impact of diet and exercise as a predictor of life expectancy is a stunning and powerful confirmation of what we often try to impress upon our patients,” Ngai continued.
“It reinforces the message that sleep is not a luxury or something to be sacrificed; it is a biological necessity on par with, and in some ways more impactful than, other cornerstone health behaviors.”
– Pakkay Ngai, MD
MNT also spoke with Jimmy Johannes, MD, a pulmonologist and critical care medicine specialist at MemorialCare Long Beach Medical Center in Long Beach, CA, likewise not involved in the study, who made similar comments about its findings.
“This study supports existing evidence that inadequate sleep is associated with a shorter lifespan,” Johannes said. “It’s not a surprising finding since this association has been described previously, but is nevertheless sobering. I am curious if there is a minimum duration or frequency of sleep deprivation that is needed to affect lifespan.”
For those who may be struggling to get enough sleep each night, Ngai and Johannes shared some tips
First, prioritizing sleep is an important first step to getting sufficient sleep, Johannes said: “Often, we sacrifice sleep for various life responsibilities, duties, or even fun things. This study reminds us that getting adequate sleep is important for our health, and prioritizing sleep is one way to prioritize health.”
He advised that creating a sleep environment that promotes sleep — a quiet, cool, and dark environment — can help improve sleep quality and duration.
Furthermore, consistency is key, Ngai suggested, recommending to “go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, even on weekends, to regulate your body’s internal clock.”
Ngai also suggested establishing a relaxing pre-sleep routine, such as reading a book, taking a warm bath, or practicing meditation, to help clear your mind. It is also crucial to be mindful of what you consume in the hours before bed, he said — “avoid caffeine, large meals, and alcohol, as they can disrupt sleep patterns.”
Finally, Ngai advised limiting exposure to blue light from electronic devices like smartphones and computers for at least 30 to 60 minutes before bedtime. “This light can interfere with the production of melatonin, the hormone that makes you feel sleepy,” he explained.
“Mental illness and excess stress can be important barriers to adequate sleep, so getting help for mental illness and improved stress management can help improve sleep,” Johannes emphasized. “Further, inadequate and poor sleep can be a sign of a sleep disorder, so exploring with your doctor why you might have poor sleep can be quite important.”
