Can rising from bed too quickly result in stroke or sudden death? Fact Check

Messages on social media advise readers about the supposed dangers of waking up in the night to go to the toilet. Such messages purport that rising from bed to quickly can cause strokes and sudden death.

As such, the messages advise that readers should wait for a quoted length of time before exiting their bed. Most versions of the message quote a minute and a half (three 30 second intervals) while other variants quote 4.5 minutes (three minute-and-half intervals.)

FALSE

A 2018 version of the message claims to come from a cardiologist (and paramedic…) named Alexander, as per the example below.

My name is Alexander, I am a cardiologist and a paramedic. A very important warning for those who wake up at night to go to the bathroom…
You must be careful with the ” One-and-a-Half-minute law ” that is scientifically proven ” by waking up suddenly ” to make your physiological needs normally, you hear that someone ” was well in health and died suddenly during the night without Reason “. the most likely reason is that when that person woke up to go to the bathroom, she got up from bed in a hurry, right now, the brain needs greater blood flow, for having rested, causing a state of fainting there The stroke happens…
In this case, it is recommended to learn the ” One-and-a-Half-minute law ” that can ” save
When you wake up to go to the bathroom, you must first: ” lie down for 30 seconds after waking up ” and then ” sit in bed for 30 more seconds “, lower your legs quietly and ” sit on the End of bed for another 30 seconds ” and only then get up to go to the bathroom.
With these steps the chances are gigantic to survive a sudden stroke, regardless of age…
Share with all your family and friends. Remember that you can save yours and the lives of many people sharing this information…
Prevention is better than healing *
Pressure
Arterial
▶ 120/80 normal ▶ 130/85 normal (requires control) ▶ 140/90 high ▶ 150/95 very high Heartbeat per minute 🔺 72 BPM (Default) 🔺 60 to 80 BPM (normal) 🔺 40 to 180 BPM (abnormal)
—————–
Temperature
Degrees Celsius 🔺 36 ‘to 36.7’ Temp. Normal 🔺 37.3 ‘to 37.8’ Febrile / attention 🔺 37.8 ‘ above Fever / severe
—————–
Compatibility of blood groups
What’s your blood type and how common is it?
O+ (1 IN 3) A+ (1 IN 3) B+ (1 in cada12) Ab+ (1 in 29) O-(1 in cada15) A-(1 in 16) B-(1 in 67) AB-(1 in 167)
Water effect
About the body
We know that water is important but you never knew the right time to drink!
Did you know?
Drinking water in the correct time maximizes the effectiveness of the human body;
1 Glass of water after waking up, helps activate internal organs…
1 Glass of water 30 minutes before meal helps digestion.
1 Glass of water before showering helps lower blood pressure.
1 Glass of water
Before sleeping avoids stroke or heart attack.
‘ when someone shares something important with you, take advantage of this and share with more people. I did my part. 😉 Do yours and pass Let’s together save lives that are part of our life…

However the bulk of this message was previously spreading online back in 2016 – without “Alexander”, rather just a vague attribution to “a doctor”.

“Pls note this as very important for all shared by a doctor. – for those who get up at night from sleep to urinate or early morning : Each individual must take note of the 3 x 1/2 minutes. Why is it important? 3 x 1/2 minutes will greatly reduce the number of sudden deaths. Often this occurs, a person who still look healthy, has died in the night. Often we hear stories of people, yesterday I was chatting with him, why did he suddenly die? The reason is that when you wake up at night to go to the bathroom is often done in a rush. Immediately we stand, the brain lacks blood flow. Why “3 x 1/2 minute” very important? In the middle of the night when you are awakened by the urge to urinate for example, ECG pattern can change. Because getting up suddenly, the brain will be anaemic and causes heart failure due to lack of blood. Advised to practice “3 1/2 minutes,” which are:
1. When waking from sleep, lie in bed for the 1st 1/2 minute;
2. Sit in bed for the next 1/2 minute;
3. Lower your legs, sitting on the edge of the bed for the last half-minute. After 3 x 1/2 minutes, you will not have anaemic brain and heart will not fail, reducing the possibility of a fall and sudden death.
Share with family, friends & loved ones. It can occur regardless of age; young or old.
Sharing is Caring. If you already know, regard this as refresher.”

TLDR: The information in these messages about rising from bed too quickly resulting in stroke or sudden death appear to be entirely baseless. While moving positions (such as prone to standing up) too quickly can cause dizziness or even fainting in a minority of people, there is little chance that a stroke or sudden death will result from this.

The fundamental claim that a stroke or sudden death may arise from exiting ones bed too quickly fails to provide any reputable medical sources. We scoured various medical websites looking for any known conditions or situations matching the description in these warnings but were not able to find anything.

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Healthcare physicians often warn that rising too quickly from a prone position – which can include rising from bed, or a chair – can result in dizziness or even fainting in some people, which can be a sign of orthostatic hypotension, which would need to be diagnosed by your doctor.

While persistent orthostatic hypotension can lead to further more serious complications, the mere claim that rising from bed quickly can cause a stroke or death is entirely baseless, and physicians have in the past advised to ignore the alarmist warning. In 2016, Dr. Anthony Bray stated in response to the warning –

No I would disregard this statement ….no medical phenomenon as to sudden death be caused by getting up at night to urinate …no to that —
…
Getting up at night has no special need for such a gradual rise…no to that … There is nothing magical about 3 1/2 minutes ….
…
Getting up at night is not associated mysteriously with sudden death as suggested by the above article …The above is not true at all as it is presented.

This advice is generally in line with physicians that we have spoken to, who have made it clear that the more pertinent element to these warnings is that the need to get up in the middle of the night to urinate – if frequent – can be itself a sign of an underlying problem, including diabetes and sleep apnea. But this has nothing to do with the speed of rising from bed.

Additionally we reached out to the American Stroke Association who have told us that they do not promote these messages and while strokes can potentially happen to anyone at any time, “getting out of bed quickly is not likely to cause a stroke.”

To read up on the signs that someone may be having a stroke, read here.

The 2018 version of this warning is also attached to other “medical statistics” that vary in their accuracy, which we break down below.

Blood Pressure and Heart Rate

The information presented in the above 2018 variant about blood pressure is correct. However the statistics concerning the heart rate are confused and inaccurate. There is no “default” heart rate, and a normal heart rate is considered between 60-100 bpm at rest, with over 100 bpm or below 40 bpm considered high or low respectively. It should be noted that trained athletes are likely to have a lower resting heart rate because of increased cardio efficiency.

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Temperature

What is considered a normal body temperature varies between authorities, but an average temperature is around 37 degrees, and a high temperature is above 38 degrees.

Blood compatibility

Information in the message about blood types is generally correct, though percentages about how common they are can vary slightly between authorities.

Drinking water

While there are a number of benefits of drinking water, many of which are outlined in the 2018 version of this message, this message does contain the myth that drinking water before you go to bed can prevent a heart attack. This rumour has previously spread in its own right, and is baseless.

Given that the majority of information contained in these messages is false, we don’t recommend circulating them.