A New Study Showed That Pregnant Women In Their First Trimester Who Get Too Much Or Too Little Sleep Are At Risk For Elevated Blood Pressure And Other Complications.
Here are the results:
20.5% slept 9 hours
55.2% slept 7-8 hours
13.7% slept 6 or less hours per night
10.6% slept 10 or more hours per night
Too little pregnancy sleep
As shown by the study, most pregnant women are not getting enough sleep. Pregnant women who slept six hours or less in their first trimester had higher systolic pressure in their third trimester, compared to those women who slept the recommended 9 hours. Because of the changes occurring in your body, pregnant women need more than the normal seven to eight hours of sleep.
Too much pregnancy sleep
Believe it or not, pregnant women who sleep 10 or more hours per night had detrimental health effects, including a systolic pressure that is higher in the third trimester, as compared to those who slept 9 hours.
Pregnancy-induced high blood pressure is one symptom, along with excessive flue retention and rapid weight gain, of preeclampsia, which usually occurs after the 20th week of pregnancy. Preeclampsia is a serious condition that can be life threatening during pregnancy.
"It is a great start and one of the first, if not the first, study to look at how sleep can have an effect on blood pressure during pregnancy -- specifically first-trimester sleep," says Michael Breus, PhD, author of Beauty Sleep.
The study shows that women who got less than five hours of sleep per night were almost 10 times more likely to develop preeclampsia.
Pregnancy sleep tips
Now that you know how much sleep you need, find out how to get it! Did you know exercising late in the day can prevent you from sleeping well? These 2 articles will give you tips and tricks to help solve your pregnancy sleep issues:
More on pregnancy sleep: