Aging in Focus: Sleep and the Passage of Time

The recent publication of a study in the journal Nature, linking sleep duration to the biological aging of various organs, has brought the topic of aging to the center of discussions. At the same time, actress Vera Fischer, at 74, shared a reflection on the transformations of age on her social media, adding a personal and public perspective to the debate.

Sleep and Organ Aging

Researchers led by Junhao Wen, an assistant professor of radiology at Columbia University (USA), identified that sleeping less than six hours or more than eight hours a day is associated with faster biological aging in different organs. The study, published in Nature in May of this year, used data from about half a million UK Biobank participants.

The team developed 23 biological clocks using machine learning, drawing on imaging data, protein and molecular markers detected in blood. These tools estimate whether an organ ages faster or slower than a person’s chronological age. Wen states that “both short and long sleep are associated with faster aging of almost all organs.”

The U-Shaped Pattern of Sleep Duration

The analysis of sleep duration with the biological clocks revealed a U-shaped pattern: both short and long sleep were associated with accelerated aging signals. The effects appeared in the brain, heart, lungs, immune system, liver, skin, and pancreas, among other organs.

The lowest levels of biological aging were identified among participants who reported sleeping 6.4 to 7.8 hours a day. Other analyses pointed out that the lowest levels were seen in people who slept between six and seven hours a night. The study emphasizes that sleep duration is part of the physiology of the entire body and has effects beyond the brain.

Health Conditions Associated with Sleep Duration

The research also linked sleep duration to various health conditions. Short sleep, for example, was associated with depressive episodes, anxiety disorders, obesity, type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, cardiac arrhythmias, and ischemic heart disease.

Both short and long sleep were associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, gastritis, and gastroesophageal reflux. The authors state that sleeping little or too much can also be a sign of poorer overall health, and the study does not demonstrate that sleep duration directly causes organ aging.

Public Reflections on Aging

In a video posted this Saturday, 74-year-old actress Vera Fischer shared her perspective on aging. She revealed that she once feared aging, but now values the accumulated experience. “Time has passed across my face, my body, my story. It has brought marks, changes, lessons, and a woman who today knows herself much better than the one once called a beauty symbol,” Fischer wrote.

The actress expressed that she prefers to be admired for what she has built over her life and the choices she has made, rather than just for appearance. “Today I know much more about myself. It’s a beauty that perhaps photography can’t capture,” she said, concluding that she does not wish to return to youth and prefers to live her 74 years well.

Implications for Health and Well-Being

The study’s results and Vera Fischer’s reflection highlight the complexity of aging, addressing both its biological aspects and personal perceptions. For Junhao Wen, sleep is important to keep organ health within a coordinated network between brain and body, including metabolic balance and a healthy immune system. He suggests that in the case of depression in older age, there may be different biological pathways between those who sleep too much and those who sleep too little, indicating that therapeutic approaches may need to differ.

With information from UOL, Extra online, CNN Brazil.