Blood Pressure and Sleep

Getting enough, restful sleep is important. The body needs that rest to recover. Several studies have shown how important sleep is for blood pressure.

Sleep duration and sleep quality

For example, researchers looked at whether objectively measured sleep duration and sleep depth were linked to the chance of developing high blood pressure in the next five years. The results showed that independent of a number of other factors sleeping less than eight hours and poor sleep quality had a significant effect on blood pressure.

The chance of developing high blood pressure went up by 37 percent for every hour of sleep missed. With less than six hours of sleep per night, the risk of high blood pressure was about 70 percent higher.

In another study of more than 1,000 primary care patients, 51 percent of short sleepers who slept less than five hours had high blood pressure. In contrast, among seven-hour sleepers only 31 percent had elevated blood pressure.

Causes

Scientists suspect that sleep loss activates the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis also called the stress axis. This can lead to increased release of the stress hormone cortisol. Cortisol narrows the blood vessels and thus raises blood pressure.

Time to fall asleep

Another study examined how long it took people to fall asleep and the link to higher blood pressure. In that study, people with sleep problems lasting more than six months were compared with a control group of normal sleepers. About half of the participants had fallen asleep within 14 minutes. Those who took longer to fall asleep had a fourfold increased risk of high blood pressure. For participants who stayed awake more than 17 minutes before falling asleep, the risk rose to five times as high.

So this also shows the effect of an overactive baseline state: even though people reported feeling tired, they couldnt relax enough to fall asleep.

Sleep apnea

Sleep apnea can lead to high blood pressure. Read our article on the link between Blood pressure and sleep apnea.

Sources

This article comes from BloodPressureDB – the leading app since 2011 that helps hundreds of thousands of people monitor their blood pressure every day. Our content is based on carefully researched, evidence-based information and is continuously updated (as of 01/2026).

Author Sabine Croci is a certified medical assistant with many years of experience in internal medicine and cardiology practices as well as in outpatient care. Since 2015 she has led the editorial team at BloodPressureDB. With additional qualifications as a paramedic, first responder, and training in various therapy and emergency areas, she provides well-founded, practical, and reliably reviewed information.