Don't Do Too Little Or Too Much, Researchers Find The Ideal Sleep Duration For Middle Age

Illustration of the ideal sleep duration in one night of middle age (Pexels/Anna Nekrashevich)

YOGYAKARTA – Sleep plays a role in maintaining psychological health and plays a major role in activating cognitive function. In addition, sleep also maintains brain health and detoxification. However, with age, sleep patterns change. Based on research conducted by researchers from Cambridge University and Fudan University, sleep should not be too much or too little.

Quoting SciTech Daily, Barbara Sahakian says that good sleep is important in all stages of life. Especially with increasing age, the quality and quantity of sleep need to be really considered. For the study, published in the journal Nature Aging, researchers studied nearly 500,000 adults aged 38-73 years. Participants were asked about sleep patterns, mental health, well-being, and took a series of cognitive tests.

Researchers found that insufficient or excessive sleep was associated with impaired cognitive performance. Such as comprehension speed, visual attention, memory, and problem solving skills. According to researchers based on the data obtained, getting seven hours of sleep per night is the optimal amount of sleep for cognitive performance and good mental health. Meanwhile, poor well-being was reported to be experienced when sleeping longer or shorter.

Illustration of the ideal sleep duration in one night of middle age (Pexels/Acharaporn Kamornboonyarush)

When sleep deprivation, memory consolidation and amyloid buildup. Amyloid is a key protein that, when misfolded, causes a 'tangle' in the brain and is similar to the character of dementia. Lack of sleep also inhibits the brain's ability to get rid of toxins.

The team also found an association between sleep duration and differences in the structure of brain regions involved in cognitive processing and memory. A consistent seven hours of sleep each night is also important for reducing the potential for inflammation and susceptibility to disease in old age.

Professor Barbara Sahakian from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, one of the researchers, said that a good night's sleep is important at all stages of life. Finding ways to improve sleep quality for older people can be critical to helping them maintain good mental health and well-being and avoid cognitive decline, especially for patients with psychiatric disorders and dementia.

How do you get the ideal sleep at night? Of course a healthy lifestyle plays a role in helping you sleep more easily without overthinking before falling asleep.