The Secret to a Long Life is...

If the fountain of youth spews red wine than the potion of longevity is filled with your dreams. No, seriously. If you want to live long and prosperous, you need proper sleep.

When California researchers studied more than 2,000 women who were 60 and older, they found that those who took the least amount of naps and had the fewest complaints of insomnia were the most “successful agers.” Factors that were examined included the women’s use of sleeping aids, daytime sleepiness, napping, insomnia, early morning awakening, snoring, overall sleep quality and sleep duration.

The results highlight that “good” sleep is the one of the key components to healthy living. In fact, poor sleep has been linked to a health diagnosis of diabetes, heart disease and obesity. Unbalanced or minimal hours of sleep have also been linked to depression, attention and memory problems and excessive daytime sleepiness. Remember, “proper sleep” refers to seven to eight hours of uninterrupted sleep.

If we all know the importance of sleep and all the ways it benefits our health, why do we continue to sabotage ourselves? Could it be we put too much on our plates and don’t want to admit that we’ve taken on too much? Or is it the growing numbers of companies who demand their employees work longer hours? [HealthDay]