A massive global study has turned up some grim news: that nearly 87% of us are not routinely getting quality sleep and meeting physical activity levels needed for our long-term health. Now, scientists have discovered that one is more influential than the other.<\/p>\n
In an effort to understand more about the biodirectional relationship between sleep and exercise, Flinders University researchers pooled worldwide health data from 70,963 users of two consumer-available health devices \u2013 an under-mattress sleep sensor and wrist-worn health tracker \u2013 between January 2020 and September 2023. Rather than gather a snapshot, the roughly 3.5 years allowed scientists to spot patterns as well as day-to-day information.<\/p>\n
What they found was that, overall, just 12.9% of the cohort routinely achieved both quality sleep of seven-to-nine hours and the recommended daily 8,000 steps or more. What’s more, almost 17% of participants routinely got both less than seven hours of sleep a night and managed fewer than 5,000 steps a day.<\/p>\n
But perhaps the most interesting aspect \u2013 since being time-poor and underslept probably won’t come as a shock to anyone, especially at this time of year \u2013 was just how the two activities interact with each other. The 12.9% who were both good sleepers and movers showed a marked improvement in physical activity the day following quality shut-eye. Essentially, their daily movement dropped off after nights where they achieved fewer hours asleep \u2013 even though, on average over the 3.5 years, they still fit into the “seven-to-nine hours a night” bracket.<\/p>\n
The findings suggest that when it comes to setting sleep and physical activity recommendations, they should be considered as two sides of the same coin rather than independent of each other. And, to date, there’s a lot more data on the type of exercise to do, in order to sleep better<\/a>. The researchers argue that more of an emphasis needs to be put on prioritizing sleep to set a good foundation for then being more active the next day.<\/p>\n \u201cWe found that getting a good night\u2019s sleep \u2013 especially high-quality sleep \u2013 sets you up for a more active day,\u201d said lead author Josh Fitton, a PhD candidate at Flinders University. \u201cPeople who slept well tended to move more the following day, but doing extra steps didn\u2019t really improve sleep that night. This highlights the importance of sleep if we want to boost physical activity.\u201d<\/p>\n And, according to the data, more sleep didn’t mean increased physical activity \u2013\u00a0there was a threshold where anything beyond seven hours seemed to have little impact on movement.<\/p>\n \u201cOur data showed that sleeping around six to seven hours per night was linked to the highest step counts the next day,\u201d said Fitton. \u201cBut that doesn\u2019t mean you should cut back on sleep because quality is just as important. People who slept more efficiently, meaning they spent less time tossing and turning, were consistently more active.\u201d<\/p>\n The study also highlights how, for the majority of people, it’s a challenge to lock in both enough sleep and steps for our wellbeing \u2013 something that 87.1% were unable to achieve on average.<\/p>\n \u201cOur findings call into question the real-world compatibility of prominent health recommendations and highlight how difficult it is for most people to have an active lifestyle and sleep well at the same time,\u201d Fitton added. \u201cOnly a tiny fraction of people can achieve both recommended sleep and activity levels every day so we really need to think about how these guidelines work together and what we can do to support people to meet them in ways that fit real life.\u201d<\/p>\n While getting better-quality shut-eye is often easier said than done, the researchers suggest that we need to reframe the act of sleep as just those hours between living our lives and appreciate its important role in our health.<\/p>\n \u201cPrioritizing sleep could be the most effective way to boost your energy, motivation and capacity for movement,\u201d said senior author Danny Eckert, a professor at Flinders University. \u201cSimple changes like reducing screen time before bed, keeping a consistent bedtime, and creating a calm sleep environment can make a big difference.<\/p>\n \u201cOur research shows that sleep is not just a passive state, it\u2019s an active contributor to your ability to live a healthy, active life.\u201d he added.<\/p>\n Supporting this research is another new study from scientists at the University of Michigan<\/a>, who found that dopamine neurons are particularly active during nonrapid eye movement (NREM) sleep \u2013 which supports our reward and motivation brain signals when we’re awake.<\/p>\n They found that this dopamine spike is synchronized with memory-boosting sleep spindles, helping to strengthen motor memories and improve motor skills. This challenges traditional thought that these dopamine neurons only serve this role when we’re fully conscious.<\/p>\n \u201cAs alterations in dopamine signaling are associated with neurodegenerative diseases that also involve motor deficits and sleep disturbances, understanding these links could pave the way for improved therapeutics and advancements in human health,\u201d said the Science Advances study<\/a> co-author Ada Eban-Rothschild, an associate professor at the University of Michigan. \u201cThe findings highlight that sleep is an active biological period during which key neural circuits strengthen the skills and patterns we rely on every day.”<\/p>\n The research was published in the journal Communications Medicine<\/a>.<\/p>\n