Healthy Tips for Seniors: Sleep Time
An appropriate amount of sleep is essential for any age group, but especially for senior citizens. Along with the physical changes that occur with age, changes in sleeping patterns can be a part of the aging process. It is recommended that senior citizens get about 7 to 8 hours of sleep each day. Learning how to manage sleeping problems can be challenging, but the importance of sleep for physical and mental health is very important. Not being able to get control of sleeping issues can affect senior citizens in the following ways:
- Proper amount of sleep helps maintain brain health and lowers the risk of age-related cognitive decline.
- Inadequate sleep can affect ones moods. A lack of sleep can decrease hormone levels that can result in irritability, stress, and depression in severe cases
- Lack of sleep can affect concentration
- Sleep deprivation impairs learning by affecting the ability to store and recall information
- Without an adequate amount of sleep, the body’s healing process can be delayed. Your body depends on rest to fight