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Written By: Editorial Team | Published : June 18, 2014 5:43 PM IST
A new University of Oregon-led study of middle-aged or older people has found that those who get six to nine hours of sleep a night think better than those sleeping fewer or more hours. The study reaffirms numerous small-scale studies in the United States, Western Europe and Japan, but it does so using data compiled across six middle-income nations and involving more than 30,000 subjects for a long-term project that began in 2007. 'We wanted to look at aging, particularly dementia and cognitive decline as people get older, and the importance of sleep. Our results provide compelling evidence that sleep matters a lot,' lead author Theresa E. Gildner, a doctoral student in the UO's anthropology department said. 'In all six countries, which are very different culturally, economically and environmentally -- despite all these differences -- you see similar patterns emerging,' she said.
The study, based on the first wave of data from a continuing long-term project, focuses on people 50 years old and older in China, Ghana, India, Mexico, the Russian Federation and South Africa. Among the key findings were: Men reported higher sleep quality than women in all six nations, with men and women in Mexico reporting the highest. Women reported longer sleep durations than men in all countries except Russia and Mexico. Men and women in South Africa slept longer than in any other country. The least sleep hours for both sexes occurred in India. Individuals sleeping less than six hours and more than nine hours had significantly lower cognitive scores compared to those in the intermediate group. (Read: World Sleep Day: Sleep disorders on the rise in India)
Trained native speakers in each country interviewed the participants, who rated their sleep quality on a five-point scale and the number of hours they'd slept over the two previous nights. That information was averaged. Participants then went through five standard cognitive tests involving immediate recall of a list of presented words, delayed recall of those words later, forward and backward recall of long lists of numbers, and a verbal fluency test in which they listed as many animals as possible without repetition, the use of proper nouns or descriptors. (Read: 10 tips for better sleep (World Sleep Day))
The study concludes that the findings have important implications for future intervention strategies for dementia. The consistent associations between intermediate sleep durations, high sleep quality and enhanced cognitive performance in these diverse populations suggests that improving sleep patterns may help reduce the level of cognitive decline as seen in older adults. Another important finding, Gildner said, is the gender difference in all sleep and cognition variables. Citing previous studies, the authors hypothesized that women's sleep patterns reflect postmenopausal changes, increased bladder instability and feelings of isolation after the loss of a spouse or lack of social support. Cognition scores of women may result from their sleep difficulties and/or lower educational levels. The study is published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine. (Read: 6 tips to sleep like a baby )
Which things you should avoid for better sleep?
Technologies meant to make life easier have actually invaded our sleep cycle. According to a new research, majority people take resort in the virtual world before going to bed. The average bedtime ritual has changed from reading a book to checking social media sites nearly four times and watching at least 17 minutes of television. Experts have suggested that in order to get a good night's sleep you should avoid watching television, work on your mobile and computer for at least half an hour before trying to sleep.
But apart from spending time away from technology, there are a few other things you should avoid right before you hit the sack:
1. Avoid taking naps in the day time: Most of us feel sleepy after having a heavy meal in the afternoon. While short naps can help you to get through the day, they will definitely interfere with getting some peaceful shut eye in the night. This will in turn change your sleeping pattern or schedule and affect your day time productivity and alertness.
2. Avoid heavy meals at night: Heavy and spicy meals just before going to the bed can cause digestive discomfort. It can cause indigestion and acidity making it hard for you to sleep. Spicy or heavy meals also increase your body's temperature and interferes with the action of sleep-inducing hormones. So, plan your dinner at least 2-3 hours before going to bed.
3. Avoid alcohol and cigarettes: There is a common misconception that drinking before going to bed can help you fall asleep. While alcohol makes you fall asleep faster, it reduces your sleep quality and wakes you up later in the night. Cigarettes, on the other hand, contain the stimulant nicotine which tends to disrupt the sleep cycle. People who smoke also experience nicotine withdrawal at night making it even harder for them to sleep.
4. Avoid coffee and tea: Caffeine is a stimulant that helps you to stay awake. Caffeinated beverages are also diuretics which will make you want to visit the bathroom one too many times at night invariably rendering you sleepless. So avoid having coffee, tea, chocolates and cola at least four to six hours before going to bed. (Read: Having sleepless nights? Here are 10 things you should avoid for better sleep)
With inputs from ANI
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