Sleep and Human Aging

Bryce A Mander; Joseph R Winer; Matthew P Walker

doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2017.02.004

Sleep and Human Aging

Neuron. 2017 Apr 5;94(1):19-36. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2017.02.004.

Authors

Bryce A Mander¹, Joseph R Winer¹, Matthew P Walker²

Affiliations

¹ Sleep and Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-1650, USA.
² Sleep and Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-1650, USA; Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720-1650, USA. Electronic address: mpwalker@berkeley.edu.

Abstract

Older adults do not sleep as well as younger adults. Why? What alterations in sleep quantity and quality occur as we age, and are there functional consequences? What are the underlying neural mechanisms that explain age-related sleep disruption? This review tackles these questions. First, we describe canonical changes in human sleep quantity and quality in cognitively normal older adults. Second, we explore the underlying neurobiological mechanisms that may account for these human sleep alterations. Third, we consider the functional consequences of age-related sleep disruption, focusing on memory impairment as an exemplar. We conclude with a discussion of a still-debated question: do older adults simply need less sleep, or rather, are they unable to generate the sleep that they still need?

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; aging; brain stimulation; dementia; memory; non-rapid eye movement sleep; rapid eye movement sleep; sleep; sleep spindles; slow waves.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Aging / physiology*
Aging / psychology
Brain / physiology*
Brain / physiopathology
Brain Waves
Humans
Memory Disorders / psychology
Polysomnography
Sleep / physiology*
Sleep Wake Disorders / physiopathology*
Sleep Wake Disorders / psychology

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

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