People are simply sleeping less.  Maybe it' technology or now, the growing financial crisis, but the reality is that in modern society, sleeping seems to be relegated to a less than top of the list priority.  But getting adequate sleep is essential for health and too little sleep is considered a risk factor for diabetes and heart disease.

If you add night-time hypertension and too little sleep together you increase the risk for heart disease even further. This is of particular concern as we age since older people seem to be set up for less sleep and they would be a group more likely to have ongoing high blood pressure.

To bottom line it - though we experts seem to nag endlessly about sleep needs - this is just another study to implicate lack of sleep as a serious risk factor for heart disease.  Get some zzzs!!