‘People should not feel guilty’: weekend lie-in may be good for you, experts say

Previous advice stressed risks of sleeping in but about 90 minutes extra could prevent high blood pressure For years, experts have stressed the risks of lie-ins, warning that catching up on missed sleep at the weekend can disrupt the body’s internal clock and trigger adverse health effects. Now analysis has produced a heartening caveat to that advice: if you do not overdo it, weekend lie-ins may be good for you, with an ideal benchmark of 1hr 27min extra in bed to protect against high blood pressure. Most experts still agree that setting a routine bedtime and wake-up time is key to maintaining good health. But a new study shows a modest amount of catch-up sleep – one to two hours extra – after a long week is associated with a lower prevalence of high blood pressure. Globally, more than 1.3 billion people have hypertension. They face a much higher risk of heart attack, stroke, kidney disease and early death. While other ways to avoid high blood pressure remain crucial – such as staying active, maintaining a healthy weight and eating well – the study suggests people should no longer feel guilty about getting up late at the weekend, experts said. The research was presented i