The elderly population doesn’t need less sleep just because they’re not as busy and physically active as the younger ones are. Sleep stands as one of the most important basic needs that one should never neglect.

While this fact may be true, it also can’t be disputed that seniors don’t get enough sleep. Physical and mental conditions are two of the top contributors to why seniors suffer from terrible sleep conditions, highlighting how important it is to address poor sleep quality. Fortunately, there are many ways to improve sleep quality, with sleep aids like affordable electric beds, mattresses and beddings, eating well, and an overall change in habits, to name a few.

The bottom line is that, whatever its root cause, seniors must prioritize paying attention to sleep quality. You’ll learn and understand more in this article.

It Increases Alertness During Waking Hours

Many seniors have a troubled sleep cycle when their body’s natural circadian rhythm starts to have difficulty distinguishing between night and day. It happens when an aging individual tends to have long naps and sleeping hours during the daytime, resulting in difficulty falling asleep at night.

To fix this, you can start by being more alert and physically active during the day. Good sleep quality at night increases alertness during waking hours as you feel well-rested and relaxed. With this, you’ll also be able to do more activities during the daytime without feeling tired.

These activities don’t have to be strenuous. It can be doing the supermarket run, meeting up with friends, walking your dog, engaging in a dance class, or attending gatherings, among others. What’s important is you’re busy enough during the day to feel the need to relax and sleep at night.

It Can Stop Irritability

Irritability is common in the aging population simply because they lack good sleep. Put yourself in that same position. Is it not that when you lack sleep, you wake up the next day feeling irritated at even the slightest inconvenience? This same situation applies to the elderly.

Frequent irritability doesn’t improve your mental and emotional health. Moreover, it may also affect your social life when you can’t foster good relationships with other seniors when angry feelings get in the way of doing so. Unlike the younger population, an elderly’s social life may already be sparse, so don’t make it suffer even more.

Good sleep quality can help you wake up to a better day, have mental and emotional stability, and have an overall good mood.

It Helps Maintain Good Heart Health

The heart is one of the body’s most important main organs. Unfortunately, your physical health could deteriorate fast when it fails and suffers abnormalities. While genetics play a significant role in one’s heart condition, lifestyle matters just as much, especially sleep and exercise.

Your blood pressure goes down when you’re sleeping. It allows the heart to ‘take it easy’ and get some rest after working so hard when you’re awake. The lesser sleep you have, the longer the blood pressure stays up within the 24-hour. Unfortunately, having frequent high blood pressure leads to even more detrimental effects like stroke and other heart diseases.

There are many ways to protect heart health. But don’t neglect one of the simplest: having enough sleep.

It Reduces Feelings Of Loneliness

Feelings of loneliness can hit just about anyone, but such can be significantly higher in the elderly population. It goes back to how they are to have lost friends, family, or loved ones. Many also live alone.

Getting good quality sleep reduces feelings of loneliness, as you’re less likely to think about and ponder on this thought at night. Sleep can help release happy hormones and endorphins. Having enough supply of these hormones can help mask whatever negative or sad feelings you may suddenly think of.

It Makes You Look Young

No one can stop the body’s physical aging, but if you could slow it down, why not? It can help boost your self-confidence when you don’t look your age. Regular visits to the dermatologist can help, but there’s a free and simple tip that also contributes a lot, and that’s getting enough sleep.

An individual’s glands and hormones have more time to heal while sleeping. There are many effects to this, one of which is having glowing and youthful skin. Sleep is one of the best ways to save your body from stress, so it’s worth prioritizing improving your sleep quality.

Final Thoughts

An aging individual naturally has a lot more needs than an ordinary one. Diet, exercise, and great social life are equally important, but one basic need that shouldn’t be neglected is sleep. The reasons enumerated above are only a few, but they should be compelling enough to show how and why it’s important for the aging population to get enough sleep. And, it’s not just sleeping per se, as in resting your body and head; it’s also ensuring that sleep quality is at its best.