Live longer, sleep less.....

Only manage five hours of sleep? It's the ideal amount for women who want to live longer

By SOPHIE BORLAND
Last updated at 3:31 PM on 1st October 2010

Women who think they aren't getting enough beauty sleep shouldn't worry - resting for between five and six and a half hours a night are more likely to live longer, research claims.

Those who get slightly less than the healthy recommended amount of seven hours tend to outlive those who sleep much more.

The researchers hope their findings will help dismiss the commonly-held belief that people aren’t getting enough sleep.

Women who slept for between five and six-and-a-half hours each night had the best long-term survival rate, according to a recent study

While adults are advised to have at between seven and nine hours a night to stay healthy, many end up getting much less.

This latest study involving 459 elderly women in America found that those who slept for between five and six and a half hours a night had the longest survival rates.

Researchers from the San Diego School of Medicine have been monitoring the participants aged between 50 to 81 since 1995 to try and establish a link between sleep and mortality.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1316805/Five-hours-sleep-optimum-women-want-live-longer.html#ixzz11D6EoDu9