According to their internal body clock, most older adults need to go to sleep around 7 p.m. or 8 p.m. and wake up at 3 a.m. or 4 a.m. Many people fight their natural inclination to sleep and choose to go to bed several hours later instead.
Older people wake up more often because they spend less time deep sleep. Other causes include needing to get up and urinate (nocturia), anxiety, and discomfort or pain from long-term (chronic) illnesses. Sleep difficulty is an annoying problem.
Typically, there is a phase advance in the normal circadian sleep cycle: older people tend to go to sleep earlier in the evening but also to wake earlier. They may also wake more frequently during the night and experience fragmented sleep.
Sleep and Aging
Older adults need about the same amount of sleep as all adults—7 to 9 hours each night.
Sleep Changes in Older Adults. Most healthy older adults aged 65 or older need 7-8 hours of sleep each night to feel rested and alert. But as you age, your sleep patterns may change. These changes can cause insomnia, or trouble sleeping.
Boredom, depression, chronic pain and/or nutritional deficiencies can be some of the underlying causes that account for excessive daytime sleeping. Medications can also be a problem.
Insomnia in the Elderly
In elderly individuals, sleep‐maintenance insomnia and early awakening are more common complaints than sleep‐onset insomnia; this is likely due to the age‐related changes in sleep architecture and circadian rhythm described above.
While a 30- to 90-minute nap in older adults appears to have brain benefits, anything longer than an hour and a half may create problems with cognition, the ability to think and form memories, according to the study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
The Best Time to Sleep Is Between 8 p.m. and Midnight
Within that four-hour timeframe, you should go to bed when you're tired enough to get to sleep easily, but early enough to be well-rested the next day.
In adults, a nap typically includes all the stages of sleep but in different proportions than regular nightly sleep. Naps are a useful stopgap for people who struggle to get enough sleep at night. But health experts agree that napping does not provide the same restorative power as a full night's rest.
Australians are among the world's earliest risers, with nearly half of all Aussies getting out of bed before 7am, according to a new study.
In general, deep sleep (slow wave sleep) decreases with age in the adult population. During nocturnal sleep, the proportion of non-rapid eye movement sleep (NREM) stage 1 and stage 2 increases with age, and the proportion of slow-wave sleep and REM sleep decreases with age2,11 (see Figure 1).
Loss of muscle tone As we get older, we tend to lose muscle tone, including in the upper airway. The soft palate in the back of the roof of your mouth, for instance, becomes more susceptible to vibration. And the movement of those tissues, including the uvula, is what we hear as snoring.
It can be a normal response to physical activity, emotional stress, boredom, or lack of sleep, but it can also signal a more serious mental or physical condition.
Beneath the surface, your body is aging too, and sleep loss can speed up the process. A study done by UCLA researchers discovered that just a single night of insufficient sleep can make an older adults' cells age quicker.
A variety of processes may interfere with sleep and wakefulness in the elderly. Among them are acute and chronic medical illnesses, medication effects, psychiatric disorders, primary sleep disorders, social changes, poor sleep habits and circadian rhythm shifts.
“There is no such thing as a “fixed or ideal time” to go to bed which will suit all individuals. It is generally advisable to fall asleep between 10 pm to midnight as for most people this is when the circadian rhythm is at a point that favours falling asleep.”
Older adults are more likely to take naps during the daytime due to age-related changes in circadian rhythms and sleep patterns. Cultural beliefs, chronic conditions, medications, and lifestyle changes can also contribute to daytime napping. Napping may impact health outcomes among older people.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, an afternoon nap of around 20-30 minutes is best for boosting alertness and mental performance, without interfering with nighttime sleep. The new study, however, suggests that an afternoon nap of around 1 hour is ideal for improving cognitive functioning among older adults.
Age: 65. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, people who are aged 65 and older as part of the “older population” category for the purposes of data collection and reporting.
By the age of 80, cerebral blood flow is approximately 20% less than at age 30, which means that the heart has less capacity for physical exertion and may feel fatigued more easily. As a result, we feel a gradual decline in our energy and endurance levels.
NEW ORLEANS – Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) should be the first-line therapy for insomnia in seniors, but many clinicians are unaware of its benefits, experts say.
What Is Narcolepsy? Narcolepsy is a neurological disorder that affects your ability to wake and sleep. People with narcolepsy have excessive, uncontrollable daytime sleepiness. They may also suddenly fall asleep at any time, during any type of activity.