Can optimising sleep extend your lifespan?

The quest for a longer life is not new but the methods to achieve it are becoming ever more complex. In recent years, the term biohackers – people who want to make their brain and body function better by “hacking” their biology – have explored ways to slow down or even reverse aspects of aging. Some approaches have been extreme, involving experimental treatments, while others focus on more practical lifestyle interventions aimed at extending longevity.

Some researchers argue that aging itself should be treated as a condition that can be managed rather than an unavoidable decline in function (1). Given that aging is the primary risk factor for numerous diseases, the focus has shifted toward living better for longer by narrowing the gap between healthspan (years spent in good health) and lifespan (total years lived).

Sleep is a fundamental biological process that changes with age, and those who reach advanced ages often exhibit a strong ability to adapt to these changes (2). Given its essential role in maintaining health, could optimising sleep contribute to extending lifespan and healthspan?

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What does optimising sleep mean?

With the rise of consumer sleep technology, various apps, wearables, and nearables have emerged, claiming to improve sleep quality (3). However, optimal sleep is highly individualised as there is no universal formula that applies to everyone (4). It’s often argued that rather than relying on arbitrary metrics like ratings, we should focus on understanding and responding to our unique sleep patterns. However, these scores can still be valuable for gaining insights into sleep, provided they are supported by transparent, proven technology and clearly defined methodologies behind how the scores are generated.

This idea also aligns with biohacking sleep, which involves making personalised lifestyle adjustments to improve sleep quality and promote longevity. These changes may include modifying sleep schedules, adjusting light exposure, or tracking sleep.

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The importance of sleep for longevity 

Sleep remains one of the few physiological processes for which we do not know its exact functions. However, sleep impacts every aspect of our physical health, mental health, and performance (5,6).

Some key brain processes during sleep include:

• Memory consolidation and learning: Sleep facilitates the formation of new neural structures that support cognitive processing (7).
• Waste clearance from the brain: Slow-wave sleep is associated with the removal of toxic proteins, including beta-amyloid, an abnormal protein that builds up in the brain in Alzheimer’s disease (8).
• Emotional regulation: Adequate sleep, particularly REM sleep, plays a crucial role in regulating emotional stress (9), which may help protect against chronic psychological strain, a known risk factor for reduced lifespan and age-related disease (10).

Given these functions, optimising sleep may serve as a preventative strategy against age-related cognitive decline and neurodegenerative diseases.

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The importance of a consistent sleep routine

While conventional wisdom suggests that more sleep is better, recent research challenges this assumption. Instead of focusing solely on sleep duration, sleep regularity, the consistency of sleep-wake timing, may be a stronger predictor of long-term health outcomes (11,12).

A study of nearly 173,000 adults revealed that maintaining a stable sleep schedule was associated with significant gains in life expectancy (13). These findings suggest that encouraging people to maintain a regular sleep routine may be a more practical and effective approach to promoting longevity than merely aiming for longer sleep.

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Is there too much pressure on sleep?

While sleep is essential for health and longevity, placing excessive focus on perfecting sleep can sometimes backfire. Seeking flawless sleep may lead to anxiety at night, which ironically makes it harder to sleep.

Insomnia affects many people, and worrying too much about sleep quality can worsen the problem. This is why it’s important to reframe thoughts about sleep – focusing on better sleep, not perfect sleep. Approaching sleep with a flexible, personalised mindset may help reduce stress and promote healthier habits.

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Conclusion: The need for a personalised approach to sleep

Given the variability in sleep needs, a personalised approach to sleep optimisation is crucial. With this, it has been thought of as an essential building block to a longer life. There is no single formula for sleep, but maintaining regular sleep patterns, improving sleep quality, and listening to your body can help you build a routine that works for you. 

References

1. Falshaw N, Sagner M, Siow RC. The Longevity Med Summit: insights on healthspan from cell to society. Front Aging. 2024 Jul 16;5:1417455.

2. Cavaillès C, Dintica C, Habes M, Leng Y, Carnethon MR, Yaffe K. Association of self-reported sleep characteristics with neuroimaging markers of brain aging years later in middle-aged adults. Neurology. 2024 Nov 26;103(10):e209988.

3. O’Neill C, Nansen B. Sleep mode: Mobile apps and the optimisation of sleep-wake rhythms. First Monday [Internet]. 2019 Jun 1;24(6). Available from: https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v24i6.9574

4. Fjell AM, Walhovd KB. Individual sleep need is flexible and dynamically related to cognitive function. Nat Hum Behav. 2024 Mar;8(3):422–30.

5. Chaput JP, Dutil C, Featherstone R, Ross R, Giangregorio L, Saunders TJ, et al. Sleep timing, sleep consistency, and health in adults: a systematic review. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 2020 Oct;45(10 (Suppl. 2)):S232–47.

6. Charest J, Grandner MA. Sleep and athletic performance: Impacts on physical performance, mental performance, injury risk and recovery, and mental health. Sleep Med Clin. 2020 Mar;15(1):41–57.

7. Colicos MA, Collins BE, Sailor MJ, Goda Y. Remodeling of synaptic actin induced by photoconductive stimulation. Cell. 2001 Nov 30;107(5):605–16.

8. Xie L, Kang H, Xu Q, Chen MJ, Liao Y, Thiyagarajan M, et al. Sleep drives metabolite clearance from the adult brain. Science. 2013 Oct 18;342(6156):373–7.

9. Vandekerckhove M, Wang YL. Emotion, emotion regulation and sleep: An intimate relationship. AIMS Neurosci. 2018;5(1):1–17.

10. Lyons CE, Razzoli M, Bartolomucci A. The impact of life stress on hallmarks of aging and accelerated senescence: Connections in sickness and in health. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2023 Oct;153(105359):105359.

11. Lunsford-Avery JR, Engelhard MM, Navar AM, Kollins SH. Validation of the Sleep Regularity Index in older adults and associations with cardiometabolic risk. Sci Rep. 2018 Sep 21;8(1):14158.

12. Trivedi R, Man H, Madut A, Mather M, Elder E, Dhillon HM, et al. Irregular sleep/wake patterns are associated with reduced quality of life in post-treatment cancer patients: A study across three cancer cohorts. Front Neurosci. 2021 Sep 22;15:700923.

13. Li H, Qian F, Han L, Feng W, Zheng D, Guo X, et al. Association of healthy sleep patterns with risk of mortality and life expectancy at age of 30 years: a population-based cohort study. QJM. 2024 Mar 27;117(3):177–86.

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