In this research a total of 341,248 adults with an average age of 39.7 years were included, and the follow up were 15-years (Chen LJ, et.al., 2022).

The participants reported sleep duration and also disturbances (difficulty falling asleep, easily awakened, and if they used sleeping medication.

The participants’ physical activity was also measured.

This is what the researchers found. Compared with the reference group which was sleeping 6-8 h per day, participants who slept more than 8 h per day had higher risk for all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality and cancer mortality.

Increased risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality was found in participants who had difficulty falling asleep and also by those who used sleeping medication when compared with those who slept well.

The following was, however, the most interesting finding.

The researchers found that being physically active at a moderate intensity for 25-65 min/day eliminated these associations.

Exercise is extremely important.

Reference

Li-Jung Chen 1, Mark Hamer 2, Yun-Ju Lai 3, Bo-Huei Huang 4, Po-Wen Ku 5, Emmanuel Stamatakis. Can physical activity eliminate the mortality risk associated with poor sleep? A 15-year follow-up of 341,248 MJ Cohort participants. J Sport Health Sci. 2022 Sep;11(5):596-604.