Your grandparents get up very early every morning. Why? It turns out there’s scientific evidence as to why older people wake up earlier as they get older, a report says Indy100.
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Researchers have found that the natural aging process leads to changes in the time it takes the body to approach sleep.
According to HuffPost, our sleep and wake times depend on both our genetics and age.
“Like most things that change with age, there isn’t just one reason, and they’re all connected,” said Cindy Lustig, a psychology professor at the University of Michigan, in an interview with Indy100.
This all has to do with the fact that the brain becomes less responsive to signs of fatigue as we age. Factors like sunlight, social cues, and physical activity tell the body where we are during the day.
With the youngest, the connections are taken for granted: for example, they associate dinner with the thought of sleeping in the next few hours. Older people have more difficulty using the same indicators.