February 22, 2008 Naps may be linked to strokes in seniors Play video

(NECN/ABC) - Daytime dozing may signal a serious health risk for seniors. Regular, scheduled naps have been linked to better healthy, but if you're a senior citizen and you find yourself dozing off during daily activities, you may be at increased risk for stroke.

Research from Columbia University finds that seniors who are often sleep in the daytime have significantly greater odds of a stroke than those who don't nod off.

Doctors studied more than 2,000 older Americans, asking them periodically about daytime sleepiness - such as how often they fell asleep during daytime TV watching, conversations with others, and even stopped in traffic while driving.

Results showed that those who reported "some dozing" had double the risk of stroke, and frequent daytime dozers had more than quadruple the risk.

Doctors theorize that excessive drowsiness could be a sign of an underlying health problem, such as sleep apnea, which causes people to stop breathing for short periods during the night.

Experts recommend seniors suffering from daytime sleepiness have a complete physical so doctors can detect and treat any hidden health problems.

ABC's Dr. Timothy Johnson has the details.