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Updated: Sep 13, 2025
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Multi-Modal Home Sleep Monitoring in Older Adults
Published on: January 26, 2019
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Cognitive-friendly sleep patterns in older Adults:A cross-regional HCAP study
Jianhong Liao1, Yunhan Shi1, Yanru Li2
1Department of Sleep Medical Center, Beijing Tongren Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China; Key Laboratory of Otorhinolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery (Capital Medical University), Ministry of Education, Beijing, China.
Sleep Medicine
|July 27, 2025
Summary
Optimal sleep patterns, including daytime naps and nighttime sleep duration, show nonlinear links to cognitive health in older adults. Tailored public health guidance on sleep habits is recommended for better cognitive performance.
Area of Science:
- Gerontology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Sleep patterns are crucial for cognitive health, but their nonlinear associations across diverse populations are not well understood.
- Daytime napping and nighttime sleep duration complexities require further investigation in relation to cognitive function.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the nonlinear relationships between sleep patterns (napping and sleep duration) and cognitive function in older adults.
- To compare these associations across distinct populations using harmonized data from China and Europe.
Main Methods:
- Utilized harmonized cognitive assessment data from the China Health and Retirement Longitudinal Study (CHARLS-HCAP) and the Survey of Health, Ageing, and Retirement in Europe (SHARE-HCAP).
- Assessed cognitive function using the Minimum Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Brief Community Screening Instrument-Dementia (BCSID, 10/66), covering orientation, memory, visuospatial, executive, and language domains.
- Employed restricted cubic spline (RCS) models and multivariate regression to analyze nonlinear effects and identify optimal sleep duration thresholds.
Main Results:
- In CHARLS (n=4307), optimal nap duration was 42-50 min and sleep duration was 5.8-7 h, showing an inverted U-shaped relationship with cognition.
- In SHARE (n=2685), optimal nap duration was 35-40 min and sleep duration was 6-6.7 h, also exhibiting inverted U-shaped trends but with distinct optimal ranges.
- Cross-regional analysis suggested cognitively beneficial sleep patterns: 35-60 min naps and 5-7 h sleep for Chinese older adults; 5-75 min naps and 4-8 h sleep for European older adults.
Conclusions:
- Both napping and sleep duration demonstrate nonlinear, domain-specific associations with cognitive performance in older adults.
- Public health guidelines should highlight the intricate links between sleep patterns and cognitive health.
- Lifestyle habits, particularly sleep behaviors, significantly impact cognitive well-being in aging populations.
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