(image: KobizMedia/ Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, July 26 (Korea Bizwire) — A person who takes a longer time to fall asleep has a twofold higher likelihood of dying compared to someone with quicker sleep onset, a study showed Tuesday.
A research team from Korea University’s College of Medicine conducted a prospective cohort study on 3,757 individuals aged between 40 and 69, residing in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, over an 18-year period.
The research team referred to the time taken to fall asleep as “sleep latency.”
The subjects were categorized into two groups: an intermittent latency group that took less than 30 minutes to fall asleep, and a chronic latency group that took more than 60 minutes to fall asleep more than once a week or more than 30 minutes three times a week.
The results indicated that the mortality risk increased by 33 percent and 122 percent for the intermittent and chronic groups, respectively, after accounting for variables related to demographics, physical characteristics, behavioral habits, and chronic diseases.
The mortality risk for the chronic latency group, especially in relation to cancer, was nearly three times higher under the same comparative conditions.
The research team speculated that sleep latency might be attributed to various factors, including insomnia, depression, and medication.
Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
