Austin, Texas – Women who sleep less than seven hours a night have a 75 percent increased risk of heart disease as they age, according to a new study.

The study, published in the journal Circulation, surveyed nearly 3,000 women between the ages of 42 and 52 over 20 years. Women who get less than 5 hours of sleep have the highest risk of heart attack or stroke, and this is after adjusting for other risk factors.

This new finding suggests that long-term sleep problems and heart disease are closely linked and highlights the need to improve heart disease prevention efforts in women as well as men.

Heart disease is the number one cause of death for women in the United States

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“The key message is to focus on getting seven to nine hours of sleep a night,” said Dr. Vivek Goswami, a cardiologist at Austin Heart Hospital. “So if you plan to wake up at 5 o’clock and go to bed at 11 o’clock, you’re already at a disadvantage. We’ve known for some time that patients who don’t get enough sleep often have higher rates of disease. It causes high blood pressure. It has a higher incidence of inflammation and insulin resistance, which can lead to diabetes.”

Dr. Goswami says there are many things you can do to improve both your sleep duration and sleep quality.

• Avoid alcohol and caffeine at night
• Avoid drinking a lot of water right before bed
• Put away screens well before bedtime
• make the room dark and quiet
• establish a routine
• Try to go to bed at the same time every night and wake up at the same time every morning