Coffee bad, naps good for cardiovascular health?

Pass on that second cup of coffee and take a nap instead – it might be better for your heart, according to the authors of two new studies presented over the weekend at the annual European Society of Cardiology Congress in London.

In the first study, Dr. Lucio Mos, a cardiologist at Hospital of San Daniele del Friuli in Udine, Italy, found coffee consumption and an increased risk of heart attacks among young adults that have been diagnosed with mild hypertension. In fact, he found that heavy coffee drinkers faced a four-fold increased risk, while the risk tripled amongst moderate coffee drinkers.

Dr. Most studied 1,200 patients between the ages of 18 and 45 over a 12 year span, all of whom had untreated stage 1 hypertension. He found a linear relationship between coffee consumption and the risk of hypertension requiring treatment – a link that appears to be “partially mediated by the long term effect of coffee on blood pressure and glucose metabolism,” he noted.

“Our study shows that coffee use is linearly associated with increased risk of cardiovascular events in young adults with mild hypertension,” the doctor explained in a statement. “These patients should be aware that coffee consumption may increase their risk of developing more severe hypertension and diabetes in later life and should keep consumption to a minimum.”

An afternoon siesta may be just what the doctor ordered

In stark contrast to the findings about coffee, research conducted by Dr. Manolis Kallistratos, a cardiologist at Asklepieion Voula General Hospital in Athens, Greece, found that midday naps could reduce blood pressure levels and lower the need for antihypertensive medications.

Dr. Kallistratos recruited 386 middle aged patients (200 men and 186 women with an average age of 61.4 years) with arterial hypertension, and after adjusting for other factors, found that the blood pressure readings of midday sleepers were an average of five percent lower than those who did not take naps during the afternoon.

He also found that nap-takers had 11 percent lower pulse wave velocity levels and five percent smaller left atrium diameters that were five percent smaller, indicating that midday sleepers have less damage to their arteries and hearts due to high blood pressure. Furthermore, the study found that the longer these midday naps are in duration, the better.

“Not only is midday sleep associated with lower blood pressure, but longer sleeps are even more beneficial,” Dr. Kallistratos explained in a statement. “Midday sleepers had greater dips in blood pressure while sleeping at night which is associated with better health outcomes.”

“We also found that hypertensive patients who slept at noon were under fewer antihypertensive medications compared to those who didn’t sleep midday,” he added. “We found that midday sleep is associated with lower 24 hour blood pressure, an enhanced fall of BP in night, and less damage to the arteries and the heart. The longer the midday sleep, the lower the systolic BP levels and probably fewer drugs needed to lower BP.”

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