Why the middle-aged get the worst night’s sleep

IT will come as little surprise to the middle-aged facing the combined stress of dealing with work, elderly parents and teenage children.

But those aged 45 to 54 have the worst night’s sleep, managing just over six-anda-half hours on average.

They get a full 49 minutes less than those in the 16 to 24 age bracket, market researchers Mintel found. They are also more likely to suffer an interrupted night because of health problems, which force them to deal with tiredness the next day.

Experts say eight hours is the optimum amount of sleep for everyone. But the poll of 2,000 British adults found almost four in ten fail to achieve even seven hours a night, while 5 per cent get by on four hours or fewer.

A spokesman for Mintel said: ‘Half of consumers are not getting the sleep we need.’ They said factors affecting the middle-aged included ‘the stress and lack of time caused by raising children and looking after elderly parents, as well as balancing employment’.

Overall, noise is the number one source of interrupted sleep, reported by 59 per cent, while 57 per cent said light caused them difficulty with sleeping.

More than a third admitted that using smartphones and tablets before bed meant they had trouble nodding off.