Sleep, Health & Baby Boomers

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Do you have trouble sleeping? What reasons would you give for your lack of sound sleep? This little poem of mine says it all about getting quality sleep, especially baby boomers. Staying up late Counting those sheep, Tossing and turning Unable to sleep. "As we age, the ability to get 7-9 consecutive hours of sleep becomes more difficult. Older adults tend to spend less time in deeper stages of sleep." Research conducted by the National Sleep Foundation supports this theory as 35% of Americans say their sleep quality is poor to fair. This can be detrimental to health according to studies which associate poor sleep with adverse affects on mental, physical and emotional well-being. There are many reasons for disruption in sleep patterns. Age-related medical conditions and medications used to treat health issues contribute to our waking up during the night. With age our sleep patterns also change causing us to sleep earlier and wake up earlier. In addition, chronic disorders like sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome and insomnia afflict many people. Just how does sleep deprivation effect our health? "Good sleep supports brain function associated with learning and remembering. Inability to sleep has been linked with depression. Lack of sleep makes it more difficult to make decisions. Interrupted sleep can hurt our physical health and make it hard to maintain a healthy weight." Short of getting a My Pillow what can we do to improve our sleep quality? Some suggestions were to modify our lifestyle. Things like not having caffeinated drinks at night, avoiding acidic foods, turning off the TV, meditation, and hot baths before bedtime are ways to combat sleep deprivation. Now, all this sleep talk has me thinking of a song to avoid playing before going to bed. Just a suggestion, but listening to Eric Clapton's "After Midnight," might not be the best way to prepare yourself for some restful sleep. Perhaps you have some other sleep suggestions? Source- Asbury Park Press, New Jersey Summary of an article from Rockland Westchester Journal News/USA Network Photo-medicalnewstoday.com