Small sleeping mistakes unexpectedly cause acute kidney failure and many other diseases

Researchers at Peking University and the Military Medical University of China analyzed data from 88,461 people from the UK Biobank. Participants wore sleep trackers that measured:

• Sleep duration (number of hours slept) and bedtime (early or late).
• Sleep rhythm (irregular or regular sleep-wake patterns between days).
• Sleep disruption (how well you sleep and how often you wake up), according to News Medical.

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Poor sleep increases the risk of 172 diseases

The results were striking: Over an average follow-up of 6.8 years, poor sleep overall increased the risk of 172 diseases. Of these, 42 had a doubled risk, with cirrhosis in particular increasing the risk 2.57 times.

And 92 diseases have a 20% increased risk, even Parkinson's disease has a 37% increased risk, diabetes has a 36% increased risk and acute kidney failure has a nearly 22% increased risk.

Irregular sleep hours cause acute kidney failure and 82 other diseases

Notably, up to 83 diseases are caused by irregular sleep hours, with the overall risk of disease increasing 1.5 - 2 times.

Among the diseases related to irregular sleep hours, there are 5 notable diseases: acute kidney failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Parkinson's, diabetes and depression.

Of these, the risk of Parkinson's disease increased 2.8 times and diabetes increased 1.6 times.

While short sleep duration and late sleep contribute to 20 diseases and poor sleep causes 9 diseases. This shows that stable sleep hours are very important in preventing diseases.

Irregular sleep schedules increase the risk of acute kidney failure in several ways.

Results showed that acute renal failure was associated with irregular sleep hours.

When the authors looked more closely at the link between irregular sleep patterns and disease risk, they found that inflammatory factors were a significant contributor. Inflammation may also be part of the reason why irregular sleep patterns lead to acute kidney failure.

Furthermore, the results also showed that irregular sleep patterns may influence chronic kidney disease, diabetes, and hypertension, which are important risk factors for acute kidney failure and may therefore cause the disease.

Irregular sleep schedules can also inhibit the liver's metabolism of foreign substances, which can lead to chemical-related kidney damage.

Sleeping late increases the risk of cirrhosis by 2.6 times

Research shows that going to bed after 00:30 increases the risk of cirrhosis by 2.6 times compared to going to bed before 23:30. And poor sleep increases the risk of respiratory failure by 1.8 times compared to good sleep, according to News Medical.

The study authors concluded: The findings underscore the importance of regular sleep schedules. While many people focus solely on the number of hours of sleep, the new research suggests we should pay more attention to the timing and consistency of our bedtimes.