Overview
- Objective tracking of more than 70,000 people found sleep quality and duration predicted next‑day steps more than activity predicted that night's sleep, with the most steps following roughly six to seven hours in this dataset and sleep efficiency proving critical.
- In the wearable study covering about 28 million person‑days, fewer than 13% regularly reached both seven to nine hours of sleep and roughly 8,000 daily steps, while nearly 17% averaged under seven hours and under 5,000 steps.
- A separate OHSU analysis of CDC records across 3,143 U.S. counties linked average sleep below seven hours to lower life expectancy, an association stronger than those for poor diet or physical inactivity and exceeded only by smoking and severe obesity.
- The county‑level sleep–longevity relationship was widespread, appearing in 84% of states in 2019 and in all states by 2024.
- Researchers caution that both studies are observational and subject to device and selection biases, yet they advise prioritizing sleep and applying basic sleep‑hygiene measures to support daily activity and long‑term health.