We all want to “age well” with as few health problems as possible. New research suggests that getting seven or more hours of sleep each night may go a long way toward achieving that goal.
The study involved 3,306 participants aged 45 and older who recorded their sleep habits in 2011, 2013 and 2015, and underwent a health check five years later. The data, analyzed by a team from China’s Wenzhou Medical University, showed that people who got at least seven hours of sleep a night tended to have significantly better health later in life.
“Successful aging in 2020 is defined as the absence of major chronic diseases, absence of physical disability, good cognitive function, good mental health, and active engagement with life. Ta.” write The researchers state in their published paper:
By the end of the study period, only 455 people (13.8%) checked all the boxes for successful aging criteria. Of those, 307 (about two-thirds) consistently slept more than seven hours a night.
Participants were divided into five groups based on their sleep habits over a four-year period. Long-term stable (8 to 9 hours of sleep on a regular basis), Usually stable (7 to 8 hours of sleep on a regular basis), Decreasing (on average of less than 8 to 8 hours), Increased (on average of less than 6 to 8 hours) or more), stable for a short time (regularly 5-6 hours).
The probability of successful aging was higher in the long-term stable group and normal stable group (17.1% and 18.1%, respectively) compared to the decreasing group (9.9%), increasing group (10.6%), and short-term stable group (8.8%). was significantly higher.
“Compared to participants with normal stable sleep time trajectories, participants with low stable sleep time trajectories and participants with increasing trajectories had a 36 percent and 52 percent chance of successfully aging, respectively. percentage was low.” write researchers.
“Participants with decreasing trajectories also had lower odds, but this was not statistically significant, likely due to sample size limitations.”
The research team considered factors such as weight, alcohol intake and gender in their analysis, but the nature of the study means they cannot confirm a direct cause-and-effect relationship.
What it does provide is further evidence of the importance of consistent, long sleep.
Previous research It also highlights seven hours a night as a potential sweet spot for sleep and healthy aging. We also know that there is a link between sleep and protection against a variety of physical and mental health problems.
The situation in China, where the study was conducted, is one of the fastest aging countries on earth, and the situation is very serious. global issues. As the world ages, we also need to maintain global health.
“These findings highlight that chronic sleep deprivation and patterns of increasing and decreasing sleep duration are not simply age-related changes.” write researchers.
“Rather, they emerge as pivotal indicators of obstacles to the pursuit of successful aging.”
This study BMC public health.
