Sleep shortages could harm women's heart health

A new study finds that women suffer more damage to their cardiovascular health from poor sleep than men suffer, and researchers believe they know the reason. They found that poor sleep is associated with greater psychological distress and higher levels of biomarkers associated with diabetes and heart disease.

Scientists suggests that the sleep health risk differences between men and women could be due, in part, to variations in the activity of a number of naturally occurring substances in the body.

The study is published online in the journal Behavior and Immunity.