Elderly Sleep Patterns

A Life of Change

As we go from infants to toddlers, sleep becomes more consolidated and naps less frequent.

Over a typical lifespan, the amount of time we spend each day sleeping declines. Newborns spend from 16 to 20 hours asleep each day. Between the ages of one and four, total daily sleep time decreases to about 11 or 12 hours. This gradual decline continues through childhood, such that an adolescent will need—though not necessarily get—about nine hours of sleep to function at his or her best. Adults through middle age need at least eight hours, and although the elderly may still require up to eight hours, they may struggle to obtain those hours in one block
HealthySleep, HarvardEduHealth

"I think of it as tissue over time [in the sense that as age alters our bodies it also alters our sleep rhythms]."
"[Over time, sleep patterns simply change]. A lot of older adults recognize that they don't sleep the same as they did when they were 18, but they can still function and they're OK."
"And all is well with the universe."
Michael V. Vitiello, psychologist, specialist, sleep in aging, University of Washington

"If people have dementia, they tend not to sleep well."
"Do sleep problems actually lead to dementia? Sometimes that's hard to tease out."
Kristine Yaffe, neuropsychiatrist, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco

In a 2017 study published in the journal Sleep, people with disrupted sleep had a 1.68 times higher risk of cognitive impairment and/or Alzheimer's onset, as opposed to those without sleep disruptions, according to the researchers. There was, however, no way of discerning whether the sleep disorders can cause dementia or whether they are a symptom of dementia. What is, however, beyond question is the association between psychological well-being in older adults, and a good night's sleep.

Experts are divided on the difference between sleep quality and sleep quantity; whether one or the other or both aid in that general feeling of well-being. If, they intuit, you're sleeping fewer hours yet feel no negative effects while awake during the day, changes you notice may simply be normal alterations in our bodies related to aging. Experiencing a rapid and sudden change in sleep or poor or inadequate sleep appears to interfere with daily life, alters your personality or you stop breathing when you snore, could be taken as signs of something serious for which a doctor's visit is required.

A national poll conducted by the University of Michigan in 2017, concluded that 46 percent of adults, 65 years of age and older, experience problems falling asleep on a regular basis. When we age there are not-too-subtle changes in our bodies when joints stiffen, brains seem to slow down, wounds heal over a longer period and we fall into shifting sleep patterns. The changes in bedtime and waking time, noticeable and irritating, leaves us often with lighter sleep, beginning in our middle-age years. Sounds awaken us when formerly we could sleep through them. We begin to get up at odd times.

Good sleep habits help balance biological factors that make it harder to attain healthy sleep as we grow older.  © Yellow Dog Productions/Getty Images

Rising earlier than anticipated has a term associated with it which circadian rhythm researchers identify as "morningness". This is a sleep pattern change associated with bedtimes skewing toward earlier evening hours as we age. The stages and depths of sleep change as well, with older adults taking longer to fall asleep, waking up more often during the night. A tendency to linger in deepest phases of sleep for shorter spans of time than when they were younger. Less rapid eye movement sleep vital for memory and learning is linked to less restorative sleep at night, equalling the need to nap during the day.

Poor sleep, according to some studies, can pose a threat to older adults leading to falls, depression and anxiety, along with memory problems and an increased risk of suicide, reflecting impacts of serious sleep issues in the older population demographic. An increased risk of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's and dementia have been associated with some sleep disorders. REM sleep behaviour disorder where people act out vivid dreams; circadian-rhythm sleep-wake disorder, causing a mismatch between bedtime and the body's willingness to sleep and sleep apnea causing breathing to stop repeatedly during sleep, in particular.

Tips for improving sleep for older adults

Here are some things you can try:

• Get regular exercise and sunshine during the day.
• Keep the bedroom cool, quiet, and dark in the evening and night.
• Keep food and snacks out of the bed, if possible.
• Get out of bed if you are unable to sleep, and do a quiet or boring activity until you feel sleepy.
• Limit or reduce the need to wake up at night, such as for medicines.
• Follow the same evening and bedtime routines.

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