How many hours should we sleep per night after we are over 40? Let’s find out together the results of a study by UK scientists.
We often hear that the ideal sleep duration should be 8 hours: is this really the case? In fact, according to recent research, a lot depends on our age. What is the ideal time frame for someone over 40 years of age to sleep? Here is the answer to science.
The perfect sleep duration? It depends on the age
A team of researchers from the United Kingdom has linked perfect sleep duration with age.
The research involved a sample of nearly 500,000 adults, aged between 38 and 73 years.
Participants completed a series of tests and questionnaires regarding their resting habits.
Subsequently, the collected data was compared with a variety of information relating to the volunteers’ brain health .
In this way, it was possible to verify that both sleeping too little and too long can cause brain damage.
How Much Sleep Should You Have After Over 40?
In particular, the research team focused on the ideal sleep duration for middle-aged people.
The study found that those over 40 should sleep 7 hours a night .
Those who, during the research, declared to rest for this period of time, in fact, obtained the best results in the cognitive tests administered by the researchers, in relation to numerous factors such as:
- Problem solving;
- Attention;
- Memory ;
- Vision.
The negative effects of deprivation and excess sleep
How is the brain of people who, after the age of 40, instead of sleeping 7 hours rest for more or less time?
In both cases, experts found a narrowing of the hippocampus, the area of the brain most affected by sleep.
Not surprisingly, this particular condition, associated with the interruption of deep sleep – indispensable in the formation of memories and in the consolidation of memory – seems to be at the basis of cognitive decline .
In addition, sleeping for an inadequate amount of time could also prevent the brain from eliminating toxins and harmful substances.
After all, the importance of rest should not be underestimated: according to scientific evidence, in fact, quality sleep counts as much as regular and physical activity for our well-being.
