LONDON (Dispatches) -- People in the over 50s who suffer from insomnia , tend to have a more negative perceptions of aging , which in turn can impact physical, mental and cognitive health, according to a new study.
In the study conducted by the University of Exeter, researchers found that people who rated their sleep the worst also felt older, and perceived their own physical and mental ageing more negatively.
Lead author Serena Sabatini, of the University of Exeter, said: “As we age, we all experience both positive and negative changes in many areas of our lives. However, some people perceive more negative changes than others. As we know that having a negative perception of ageing can be detrimental to future physical health, mental health, and cognitive health, an open question in ageing research is to understand what makes people more negative about ageing. Our research suggests that poor sleepers feel older, and have a more negative perception of their ageing. We need to study this further - one explanation could be that a more negative outlook influences both. However, it could be a sign that addressing sleep difficulties could promote a better perception of ageing, which could have other health benefits.”