Lifestyle risk factors such as physical inactivity, poor diet, smoking and many more contribute to a large extent to the formation of diseases and lead to adverse effects on health. As per a study, it has been revealed that unhealthy sleep patterns and prolonged sitting are hugely responsible for incorporating these risk factors.
This is the first ever study that examines lifestyle risk associated with abnormal sleep patterns, further leading to all-cause mortality. The researchers made use of questionnaires and then, the results were summed up into a score.
In a six-year follow-up of 231,048 participants, 15,635 deaths were registered. The study revealed a strong relation of lifestyle risk factors with all-cause mortality. 96 risk combinations were assessed and from those, around 30 risk combinations accounted for 90% of people.
Among these, prolonged sitting or unhealthy sleep patterns were considered to have the strongest association with mortality. However, some drawbacks of this study include dichotomized risk scores, lack of accurate mortality data, under specified measures and self-reported measures. The results of the study weren’t associated with long-term lifestyle patterns.
The study states that if people adhere to a healthy way of life, the risk factor could be reduced to a great extent. Some combinations of risk behavior prove to be more harmful as compared to others.
If results are to be believed, the major risk factors for all-cause mortality are the lack of prolonged sleep and prolonged sitting. This information would help in designing an effective program for preventing all-cause mortality.
