Old people love to doze off, which shows that sleep is a big way for the elderly to rest. Some people think that when they get older, they feel less and sleep less than young people. Actually, this is a misunderstanding. Old people have shallow sleep and are easy to wake up. They may sleep less every time than young people, but the total time of sleep every day must not be less than that of young people. Generally, the elderly sleep at 9- 10 in the evening, get up at 5-6 in the morning, ensure 7-8 hours of sleep every day, and arrange one hour of sleep after lunch. Sleep is also closely related to health, and many long-lived elderly people have enough sleep time. In addition to sleep time, we should also pay attention to sleep methods. Sleep posture has a great relationship with sleep effect. Generally speaking, lying on the right side is more scientific. Because: it is easy to oppress the chest and make breathing difficult; Lying on your back is easy to put your arms on your chest and press your heart, causing drowsiness; Lying on the left side is also easy to oppress the heart and stomach, and can hear heart sounds, which affects sleep. When the human body lies on the right side, the muscles of the whole body are relaxed, the breathing is comfortable, the heart is not oppressed, and the stomach is also prone to peristalsis and emptying, so that the sleep is stable, comfortable and natural. When sleeping, the indoor air should be fresh and circulated, so that the cerebral cortex can get sufficient oxygen supply. Indoor air pollution will affect the sleep effect.

Insomnia in the elderly is also a manifestation of neurasthenia, which is harmful to physical and mental health. Long-term insomnia will accelerate the aging and death of nerve cells, leading to imbalance and metabolic disorder of various organ systems. Therefore, active prevention and treatment of insomnia in the elderly is also a necessary condition to ensure good health and prolong life. Old people should not drink strong tea, coffee and other stimulating drinks before going to bed. Dinner should be light, not too full and salty to reduce the burden on the gastrointestinal tract; Second, the amount of drinking water can be controlled. Because the bladder wall of the elderly has poor stretching ability and less urine storage ability, if the number of urination increases at night, it will inevitably affect sleep. Drinking a glass of milk before going to bed and soaking feet with warm blisters can help the elderly fall asleep. Some people are used to doing some health massage exercises or qigong to relax before going to bed, and they can also be induced to fall asleep quickly. Insomnia can try. In addition, you should take off your coat when you sleep, and the bedding should be soft and comfortable. When it is cold, you should have a "foot press" to keep your lower limbs warm, so as not to affect your sleep. In summer, the elderly can't sleep outdoors, and they can't blow electric fans when they sleep, so as to avoid other diseases caused by the wind.

Old people should not sleep blindly, because lying down for a long time will cause a decline in metabolism and poor blood circulation. Therefore, while ensuring adequate sleep, the elderly should try to make their bodies more active and exercise regularly. It should be noted that insufficient exercise is often an important factor leading to insomnia in the elderly. In addition, elderly people who have been bedridden for a long time with chronic diseases should not sleep all day, try to move their limbs, change their lying position, turn over frequently and massage more to prevent bedsores. Sleep regularly and master a certain amount of time and times.

Specifically guide the elderly to sleep well.

① Pay attention to the sleeping posture of "hunching down", especially lying on the right side, which is helpful to relax muscle tissue, eliminate fatigue, help the food in the stomach creep in the direction of duodenum and avoid heart pressure. Lying on the right side for too long can be changed to supine. Stretch the upper and lower limbs, straighten the trunk, don't press your chest with your hands, don't hold your head and elbow, avoid crossing or bending your lower limbs, try to relax your muscles, keep blood flowing and breathe naturally and peacefully.

② Avoid getting excited before going to bed. Excitement before going to bed can lead to insomnia and dreaminess. Therefore, don't do intense activities before going to bed, don't watch nervous TV programs and movies, don't read profound books, don't worry about family affairs, and don't drink strong tea or coffee. Strive for "spiritual internal defense."

③ Don't eat before going to bed. Eating before going to bed, especially greasy food, will increase the burden on the gastrointestinal tract, lift the diaphragm upward, oppress the chest, and make the abdomen full, which is easy to cause many dreams, talk in dreams and nightmares, and should be avoided as far as possible.

④ Relax before going to bed. Taking a proper walk before going to bed, soaking feet in hot water, massaging feet, practicing Tai Ji Chuan and Qigong, massaging back muscles and listening to light music are very beneficial to sleep.

5 Drink less water before going to bed and urinate first. Kidney-qi deficiency in the elderly. If there are no cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, drink less water before going to bed and go to bed after urinating. Avoid bladder filling and increase defecation times.

⑥ Adjust the bedroom environment. It is difficult for the elderly to fall asleep, and they are easily influenced by environmental factors. There should be a quiet, clean and comfortable environment. Turn off the lights before going to bed or the lights are soft and dim, stop noise interference, avoid visiting during sleep, and the indoor temperature should not be too high or too low. Open the window and ventilate before going to bed, so that the indoor air is fresh and oxygen is sufficient, but you should prevent colds.

⑦ Adjust sleep time. Sleep time is usually conducive to waking up feeling comfortable, energetic and relaxed. Adjust yourself according to your own physique and living habits. It is generally appropriate to sleep for 7-8 hours for 60-70 years old, 6-7 hours for 70-80 years old, and 6 hours for those over 80 years old (including lunch break 1 hour).