Trivia: The colder the room you sleep in, the better the chances are that you'll have a bad dream.

What happens in the body when we don't get enough sleep?

Cutting down on sleep hits your memory and concentration the hardest. When people talk to them, they cannot seem to find the right words to express their ideas. Lack of sleep can also be shown by grouchiness. It has also been said that the worst instances of sleep deprivation can lead to death; lab rats have been observed succumbing to complication stemming from lack of sleep. Thus, there is a real connection between sleep and the immune system.

How long is a "complete" sleep?

The following are approximations of typical healthy sleeping for various age groups:
Infants-About 16 hours of sleep for ever 24 hours
Babies and toddlers-From 6 months to 3 years: between 10 and 14 hours per day, spread throughout a 24 hour period in the form of naps and night sleep.
Children-Ages 3 to 6: between 10 and 12 hours of sleep
Ages 6 to 9: about 10 hours of sleep
Ages 9 to 12: about 9 hours of sleep
Teenagers-About 9 hours of sleep per night (and more justified if these young people are active in different activities; amazing but true!).
Adults-7 to 8 hours a night appears to be the best amount of sleep, although an exceptional lot may need as few as 5 hours.
Older adults-Current thought is that older adults need as much, if not more, sleep than middle-aged adults. Usually a midday nap does the trick.
Pregnant women-During pregnancy, women may need a few more hours of sleep per night.

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Do older people need less sleep?

There is no quick and clear answer to this. What's clear is that we tend to lose the ability to sleep as deeply at nighttime. There is really disruption of our year-long sleeping and waking patterns as we get older.

What happens in the aging brain that causes sleep to worsen?

Structural and chemical changes are underway for sure deep in an aging brain, in the same way that the human body also deteriorates and changes. We will indeed lose certain aspects of brain function with age. One of the most greatly affected areas of the brain will be the cortex, which is responsible for generating sleep at nighttime. When we lose some of that cortical function, we simply fail to get the same quality of sleep as we were when we were younger. And what's more important is that these changes start earlier than you may think, when we're in our early 30s and 40s.

What are the elderly bound to complain of at night?

Most older people mention waking up in the middle of the night and segmented sleep afterwards. Their sleeping pattern starts with being able to fall asleep quite soon, then they start waking up and suddenly can't get back their deep slumber, and all of this at nighttime. Sometimes they could be up as early as four or five o'clock or so.
The missing benefits derived from a deep night's sleep explains why the elderly tend to take catnaps throughout the daytime. They also get drowsy at certain times during the daytime.
Of course, some major brain problems and changes like Parkinson's, dementia, and emotional and mental problems are always a threat to good sleep.

Are naps not advisable?

For the sake of not borrowing some of the time meant for the evening sleep, aging people ought not to try to nap during the daytime.

Can older people take sleeping pills?

Older people (and those taking care of them) need to know that sleeping medications have fair share of disadvantages. The medication can cause problems with concentration, memory or sedation that may carry over into the daytime. A second problem that may crop up is the complaint that sometimes they experience rebounding insomnia or withdrawal problems.
Nevertheless, our knowledge of drugs have improved over the years. Newer prescription tended to have fewer side effects and fewer addictive or dependence problems. Some of the newer, non-benzodiazepine type hypnotics tend to be a little bit better tolerated in the elderly.

When do you think people should see a doctor about a sleep problem?

If someone feels:

as if sleep problems are impairing their ability to function,

impairing their relationship with other people,

or not enabling them to get productive work done during the day,

these are all signs that they could seek professional help, and there is help (and a specialist!) available.

Sleep Apnea

When sleep apnea happens, the body reacts to sometimes insufficient air flow stemming from the otherwise natural relaxation of the muscles in the pharynx. The body tries to take a deep breath, which leads to an arousal. Bouts of apnea vary from once every six months to 50-100 times an hour.
There are many treatments for sleep apnea, the most common being mechanical aids that blow pressurized air in through the nose, and so helping people with this condition to get adequate airflow to the lungs.
It is important to note that those over the age of 70 may still be susceptible to apnea even if they don't have the symptoms (e.g. snoring).

REM Behavior Disorder

REM behavior disorder (RBD) is the closest to sleepwalking; it is what happens when someone acts out a dream in his or her sleep. In rare instances, some people dreaming don't have the normal decrease in their muscle tone and the resulting body paralysis; thus they act out their dreams. A familiar example is waking up hitting a pillow and remembering dreaming about something violent.
At the root of problems with RBD are, among others, the use of certain medications (especially anti-depressants such as Prozac and Paxil) and withdrawal from certain sedatives (such as alcohol). Otherwise, the cause is a complex puzzle. Fortunately, aside from the usual trip to the family physician, there are now sleep specialists and effective medication for these problems.

Got an extremely thorny sleep problem? The type that doctors have yet to set their sights on?? Now here's the cure that you've been waiting for!