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Deep sleep duration and GlycanAge - Is 45-50 minutes the hidden inflammation driver?
3 days ago (edited)
I’ve been diving into the relationship between deep sleep duration and biological aging markers after getting my GlycanAge results. The report mentions how insufficient sleep raises inflammatory markers, but I’m particularly interested in the deep sleep component specifically.
The research cited in GlycanAge reports shows that people with severe obstructive sleep apnea average 6.9 years older biologically, but what about those of us getting 8 hours of sleep yet still showing minimal deep sleep phases?
Looking at the glycan markers that respond to sleep quality - particularly the Glycan Lifestyle index which is influenced by sleep patterns - it seems like total sleep duration might be less important than sleep architecture?
For those who’ve successfully increased deep sleep from under an hour to 90+ minutes - what actually worked? The standard advice (cool room, magnesium, consistent schedule) seems insufficient for some of us.
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I used to obsess more about this - but realized there are a few important considerations.
Measurement is hard - most wearables and trackers underreport deep sleep. So you'll likely show shorter periods in deep sleep than you like regardless.
Also, your deep sleep adjusts to your needs. In most people, your brain does the right thing and will increase deep sleep if you need it.
It's a bit personal what might lead to this, but exercising and other forms of healthy stress will "tire" you out more and increase the deep sleep.
For me, sauna seemed quite tied to it too (although that in itself is a moving target as my physiology changes).
tldr; It probably isn't worth obsessing over deep sleep assuming you are "doing the right things" and roughly getting 40+ minutes consistently and you're feeling well (awake, alert) during the daytime.
