Lack of proper sleep may raise hypertension risk in teenagers

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University in the US defined insomnia as reporting difficulty falling and/or staying asleep and defined objective short sleep duration as less than 7.7 hours, based on the median total time asleep in a lab-based sleep study.

The study on more than 400 teenagers in the US showed that teenagers who reported insomnia and slept less than 7.7 hours were five times more likely to have clinical hypertension than "good sleepers" (those who did not report insomnia and obtained sufficient sleep defined as 7.7 hours or more).

Teenagers who slept less than 7.7 hours but did not report insomnia had nearly three times the risk of elevated blood pressure compared to good sleepers. Those who self-reported insomnia but obtained sufficient sleep did not appear to be at higher risk for elevated blood pressure or stage 2 hypertension.

Teenagers need 8 to 10 hours of sleep each night, according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, yet the average high school student is estimated to sleep only 6.5 hours per weeknight.

The findings suggest the combination of insomnia and inadequate hours of sleep likely contributes to more severe conditions than lack of sleep alone, the researchers noted.

Julio Fernandez-Mendoza, Professor of Psychiatry at the varsity noted that while poor sleep was a risk factor for high blood pressure in adults, its associations in adolescents were unknown.

"While we need to explore this association in larger studies on teenagers, it is safe to say that sleep health matters for heart health, and we should not wait until adulthood to address it," Fernandez-Mendoza said.

"Not all teenagers who complain of insomnia symptoms are at risk for cardiovascular issues. However, monitoring their sleep duration objectively can help us identify those who have a more severe form of insomnia and are at risk for heart problems."

The study was presented at the American Heart Association's Epidemiology, Prevention, Lifestyle and Cardiometabolic Health Scientific Sessions 2025, being held in New Orleans.