![]() ![]() “Getting a good night’s sleep is important at all stages of life, but particularly as we age. So getting enough deep sleep may be more important than actual hours in bed. “This is very important when it comes to cognition because that is when you move information from your short-term memory to your long-term memory,” he notes. This disruption has previously been shown to impact memory and has connections to dementia.īreus explains that it’s important to aim for this deep sleep, or REM sleep, which happens in the back half of the night. But even short-term sleep deprivation has been linked to memory loss and cognitive issues, he notes.Īdditionally, the researchers said one possible reason for cognitive decline due to less than optimal sleep may be because of a disruption in deep sleep. ![]() A product called b-amyloid can build up in the brain without enough sleep in chronically sleep-deprived individuals, and it has been linked to Alzheimer’s disease. The team found the amount of sleep can impact the structure of some brain regions that are involved in cognitive processing and memory and the greatest negative changes were found in people who got more or less than seven hours of sleep.Ībhinav Singh, M.D., FAASM, a medical review expert at The Sleep Foundation and medical director of the Indiana Sleep Center who was not involved in the study explains that less than seven hours of sleep just isn’t enough time for your brain to reset itself for the day. “But the reasons why older people have poorer sleep appear to be complex, influenced by a combination of our genetic makeup and the structure of our brains.” “While we can’t say conclusively that too little or too much sleep causes cognitive problems, our analysis looking at individuals over a long period of time appears to support this idea,” Jianfeng Feng, M.Sc and Ph.D., a corresponding author of the study and a professor from Fudan University in China said in a statement. Researchers analyzed genetic factors, cognitive abilities, brain structure, and mental health to determine the ideal sleep duration for participants. For nearly 40,000 of the participants, scientists also had access to brain imaging and genetic information. Those involved in the study were asked about their sleep patterns, mental health, and well-being, and also took part in multiple cognitive tests. Researchers from China and the United Kingdom analyzed UK Biobank data (a long-term health study) from 500,000 adults ages 38 to 73. Michael Breus, Ph.D., an Oura Sleep Advisor who was not involved in the study, notes that because of this, the data may not be transferable to all populations. Additionally, the study only measured a self-report of how long participants slept and not the quality of their sleep. The study did have some limitations in the data, specifically that 94% of the participants reported they are of European ancestry and caucasian. Additionally, more or less sleep was linked to experiencing symptoms of anxiety and depression and worse overall well-being. The research found anything more or less than seven hours was associated with a reduced ability to remember, learn new things, focus, solve problems, and make decisions. We’ve been told time and time again that adults need seven to nine hours of sleep every night, but new research points to the exact amount of quality Z’s that may support our cognitive abilities, ward off early signs of dementia, and even protect our mental health.Ī recent study published in the journal Nature Aging found that around seven hours of sleep is ideal for middle and older-aged adults. Experts say that quality of sleep is also important, and achieving deep sleep as we age is crucial for brain health.The meta-analysis found seven hours of sleep improved cognitive abilities, protected the brain from dementia, and bolstered mental health.New research claims to have found the ideal amount of sleep for middle-aged adults and senior citizens.
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