Learn how to express or defuse your anger so you can get your Zzzzs.

He'll sleep good tonight, but there are better ways to get mad.

RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—It’s been well documented that a lack of restorative sleep can cut years off your life, particularly in people suffering from coronary heart disease (CHD). But now it appears certain emotions play a part in how well you sleep. A new study found people with CHD who kept their feelings of anger tucked inside had a higher risk of poor-quality sleep than those who expressed their anger. The research recently appeared in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.

THE DETAILS: Researchers looked at 1,020 CHD outpatients enrolled in the Health and Soul Study and investigated their anger expression tendencies and sleep quality. Those who held in their anger faced at least 40 percent increased odds of poor sleep when compared with those who expressed it.

WHAT IT MEANS: It’s OK to be angry, but letting it fester can wreck your sleep and your health. If you bottle up your ire, repressed feeling could flare up in the form of anxiety, fatigue, drinking, binge-eating and, as this study shows, poor sleep. Anger can also cause physical symptoms like high blood pressure, muscle pain, headaches, and depression. Anger management is especially important for men: Guys with chronic anger are 6 times more likely to suffer a heart attack by the time they’re 50.

Here are some healthy tactics for controlling anger:

• Don’t react too fast. If someone gets on your case and makes you feel attacked, don’t lash back. Instead, consider the criticism. If it’s true, vow to improve your flaw. If you think it’s a bogus attack, let yourself cool down, and collect your thoughts before you respond. For instance, you may want to take a walk or a bathroom break before writing a nasty e-mail. Or count to 10—a few times.

• Talk it out. When you’re feeling angry, communication is key. When you’re mad, it’s easy to think that no good will come from a heart-to-heart. But if you craft your conversation right, it very well could. If someone is ticking you off, start the conversation with a compliment or a respectful statement, then proceed to explaining what bothered you, and suggest how you can work together to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

• Melt away hothead tendencies. Sometimes there’s no one directly responsible for whatever’s lit your fuse. Instead of flipping out, focus on your breathing, paying attention to air going into and out of your lungs, and then think about something or someone you really appreciate. After 10 breaths or so, you’ll be more rational.