A peaceful slumber? Apparently not for smokers!

Does smoking have anything to do with erratic sleep patterns? The answer is a big yes! A new study suggests smokers are more inclined to get poor sleep at night than people who stay away from cigarettes. .

The study found, smokers not only get fewer hours of deep slumber but may also be deprived of the much-needed restorative effects of adequate shut eye.

Lead researcher, Stefan Cohrs, of Charite Berlin medical school in Germany stated, "This study demonstrates for the first time an elevated prevalence of sleep disturbance in smokers compared with non-smokers in a population without lifetime history of psychiatric disorders even after controlling for potentially relevant risk factors."

Impact of smoking on sleep exploredr
The focus of the study was to assess the impact of lighting-up on sleep patterns. German researchers surveyed 1071 smokers and 1,243 non smokers, who were not suffering from any mental disorders.

This kind of a sample was preferred because a person having a mental disorder may be devoid of sleep due to a strained state of mind and may even resort to smoking.

The researchers prepared a questionnaire to interview the people. This was to measured the quality of sleep of an individual.

Among the smokers, 17 percent managed to sleep less than six hours each night and about 28 percent reported "disturbed" sleep quality. In contrast, only seven percent of the non-smokers reportedly slept less than six hours and 19 percent experienced a restless sleep pattern.

The study resultsr
Cohrs states that there are a large number of factors that influence sleep in an individual. More than one fourth of the smokers questioned complained of a restless and disturbed sleep, which points to a "high probability" of insomnia.

Though the findings do not directly suggest that smoking impairs sleep, certain habits like watching TV till late at night, and inadequate exercise could be contributory factors.

“But there is also reason to believe smoking is to blame - namely, the stimulating effects of nicotine,”, said Dr. Stefan Cohrs. According to him, previous studies have established that sleep problems improve when the smokers kick the butt.

Hazards of poor sleep qualityr
Poor sleep at night makes the waking hours very strenuous and difficult. Apart from that, abnormal sleep duration can be a potential risk factor for a host of medical conditions like diabetes, obesity and heart diseases.

Many things can lead to a poor sleep quality. Experts rated factors, like increase age, excess weight and alcohol abuse, but believe the most important factor is nicotine.

"If you smoke and you do suffer from sleep problems, it is another good reason to quit smoking," Cohrs said.

The study appears in the journal Addiction Biology.