sleep changes
Complaints of sleep difficulties in crease with age, as sleep may be disrupted from illness, medications, the physical changes of aging, or moves to hospitals and rehabilitation facilities. More than 50 percent of person aged 65 and older report problems with sleeping. One disorder common among the elderly is restless legs syndrome, causing unpleasant prickling or tingling sensations in the legs and feet and an urge to move them to get relief. Most frequently, men report difficulties with daytime sleepiness, napping, and night time awakening, whereas women report difficulty in falling asleep, staying asleep, and getting adequate sleep. Older people do report being sleepy during the day, and they do take naps, so apparently it is not the amount of sleep needed that declines with age but rather the ability to stay asleep. The two min reasons why the ability to sleep decreases with age are changes in circadian rhythms and the presence of sleep disorders.