Scared to death? You betcha.
Anyone who’s ever had a nightmare knows how much they can absolutely wreck your mood.
That’s because, as neuroscientist Dr. Abidemi Otaiku pointed out: “Our sleeping brains cannot distinguish dreams from reality.”
In a more alarming development, Otaiku and his colleagues examined data from over 183,000 adults aged 26 to 86, as well as 2,400 children aged 8 to 10, discovering that adults experiencing nightmares on a weekly basis have more than triple the risk of dying before 70 compared to those who do not.
The researchers noted that nightmares could be a more significant predictor of early mortality than poor dietary habits, lack of physical activity, or smoking.
Tell that to anyone who’s ever said “it was just a bad dream” to you.
“Nightmares often wake us drenched in sweat, struggling to breathe, and with heart rates soaring, as our fight-or-flight mechanism has been activated,” stated Otaiku, a Clinical Research Fellow in the Department of Brain Sciences at Imperial College London, in a press release.
“This stress reaction can be even more intense than anything we experience while awake.â
Researchers assessed the participants’ biological aging by the length of their telomeres â the tiny caps at the ends of your chromosomes that shrink as you age and are tied to diseases like cancer, heart issues and other chronic conditions.
Those who experienced night frights regularly had shorter telomeres â showing signs of accelerated biological aging â and a whopping 40% increased chance of kicking the bucket too early.
The researchers posit that this may be due to the increased stress and sleep disturbances â both of which contribute to mortality â brought on by bad dreams.
âNightmares lead to prolonged elevations of cortisol, a stress hormone closely linked to faster cellular aging. For those who frequently experience nightmares, this cumulative stress may significantly impact the aging process,â Otaiku, who recently presented his research at the at the European Academy of Neurologyâs (EAN) annual meeting.
âAdditionally, nightmares disrupt both sleep quality and duration, impairing the bodyâs essential overnight cellular restoration and repair. The combined effects of chronic stress and disrupted sleep likely contribute to the accelerated aging of our cells and bodies.â
Even monthly nightmares carried an increased risk of an early grave, although weekly ones seemed to be the real nail in the coffin.
The only silver lining is that nightmares apparently don’t discriminate â as the same findings held when controlled for age, sex, ethnicity or general mental health.
The study points to the idea that nightmares aren’t something that we as a society should be so quick to brush off.
âGiven how common and modifiable nightmares are, they should be taken far more seriously as a public health concern,â Otaiku said.
âThe good news is that nightmares can be prevented and treated. Simple measures like avoiding scary movies, maintaining good sleep hygiene, managing stress and seeking treatment for anxiety or depression can be effective.â
In addition to his suggestions for staying scary-dream-free, experts recommend maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, journaling your worries away, avoiding stimulants like alcohol and caffeine and creating a relaxing bedtime routine.
