Catching Up on Sleep on Weekends: Surprising Research Findings

Sleep for health

Those who catch up on sleep during the weekends can finally feel good about themselves. Scientists have discovered that People with the most compensatory sleep have a 20% lower risk of heart disease than those who don’t get enough sleep on the weekend.

The data covers more than 90,000 people in the UK. Research shows that Compensating for lack of sleep by taking an extra nap on the weekend can alleviate the negative effects of sleep deprivation. The results of the study were presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in 2024. They clearly showed that in people with sleep deprivation who caught up on sleep on weekends, the risk of heart disease was reduced by one fifth, compared to people who did not sleep longer on weekends.

Getting enough compensatory sleep is associated with a lower risk of heart disease. This association becomes even more pronounced in people who regularly experience insufficient sleep on weekdays.

Our results show that for the large proportion of the population in modern society who suffer from sleep deprivation, those who take the most weekend naps have significantly lower rates of heart disease than those who get the least sleep.

– says one of the study authors, Yanjun Song from the National Center for Cardiovascular Disease in Beijing.

The study used data from hospital records and information from the cause of death register. Scientists looked at 90,903 peopletaking part in the project. The observation period lasted 14 years.

Of course, sleeping in on the weekends won’t replace regular, good nights of sleep, but research suggests it can help reduce the risk of heart disease. Any studies like this are an important reminder of how important it is to get at least seven hours of sleep every night.

See: Some people need 6 hours of sleep or less. The latest research does not lie
See: Having trouble sleeping? The reason may surprise you