According to a new study, climate change can prevent you from getting a good night’s sleep.
Researchers have linked higher nighttime temperatures to shorter sleep times and poorer sleep quality—especially among people with chronic illnesses.
A new study from University of Southern California scientists found that hot weather can disrupt sleep in several ways, including by preventing the body from cooling down, triggering the stress response, and reducing time spent in deep sleep and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep.
The findings have been published in the journal International environmentHe said: A 10°C increase in daytime temperature is associated with 2.19 minutes of sleep loss, while a 10°C increase in nighttime temperature is associated with a 2.63 minute loss.
Increased temperature was also associated with more sleep disturbance during the night and more time spent awake in bed.
We already know that when there are extreme heat events, more people die from cardiovascular disease and lung disease. As global temperatures continue to rise, what will this mean for population health? said Dr. Jiayun Liao, a postdoctoral research associate at the USC Keck School of Medicine and first author of the study.
The study analyzed data from 14,232 American adults collected between 2010 and 2022. The researchers analyzed participants’ demographic, socioeconomic, and health information, as well as their FitBit data, to assess more than 12 million nights of sleep.
They also looked at eight million nights of data on sleep stages and sleep interruptions and linked this to location and weather data to see if sleep patterns were linked to changes in temperature.
The rate was higher among women, people of Hispanic ethnicity, people with chronic diseases and people with lower socioeconomic status, the study authors said.
They warned that poor sleep itself could increase the risk of a number of health problems, including heart and respiratory conditions and mental health concerns.
“This may seem like a small amount, but when added up to millions of people, the overall impact is huge,” Mr Liao said.
“This work is an important step toward understanding how sleep is affected by environmental stressors such as heat, which can increase the risk of illness and even death. If we can help people sleep better, we may be able to reduce illness and save lives.”
