With aging, various factors deteriorate the normal sleep process that is essential for the restoration of functional and physical performance. Due to aging-related diseases, life changes, or aging itself, disturbances in normal sleep cycles can profoundly affect healthy aging. To understand the interconnections between aging and the factors influencing sleep, with emerging evidence accumulated in recent years, this study elaborates on the roles of aging in sleep from four perspectives: cortical thinning, white matter degeneration, neurotransmitter dysregulation, and circadian disorganization. In brief, with aging, cortical thinning can be induced by the deposition of neurotoxic substances, and white matter degeneration can be induced by vascular abnormalities. These alterations emerging in the brain jointly disrupt sleep spindles and slow waves, leading to sleep disturbances. Age-related dysregulation in neurotransmitters (including galanin, orexin, serotonin, and adenosine) directly impairs the sleep modulation system. Disorganization in the circadian system consisting of suprachiasmatic nucleus dysfunction, reduced light transmission, and local circadian clock disruption collectively interrupts circadian rhythms, also causing sleep disturbances in the older. Of note is the bidirectional relationship between aging and sleep, which required us to examine this issue from different perspectives.

随着年龄的增长，各种因素会使正常的睡眠过程恶化，这对于恢复功能和身体机能至关重要。由于与衰老相关的疾病，生活变化或自身的衰老，正常睡眠周期的紊乱会严重影响健康的衰老。为了了解衰老与影响睡眠的因素之间的相互关系，并结合近年来积累的新证据，本研究从四个角度阐述了衰老在睡眠中的作用：皮层变薄，白质变性，神经递质失调和昼夜节律紊乱。简而言之，随着年龄的增长，神经毒性物质的沉积可引起皮质变薄，血管异常可引起白质变性。这些在大脑中出现的变化共同破坏了睡眠纺锤体和慢波，导致睡眠障碍。神经递质（包括甘丙肽，食欲肽，5-羟色胺和腺苷）中与年龄有关的失调直接损害了睡眠调节系统。昼夜节律系统中的混乱，包括视交叉上核功能障碍，光传输减少和局部昼夜节律紊乱，共同打乱了昼夜节律，这也会在老年人中造成睡眠障碍。值得注意的是衰老与睡眠之间的双向关系，这要求我们从不同的角度研究这个问题。而当地的生物钟时钟扰乱了生物钟的节律，也导致了老年人的睡眠障碍。值得注意的是衰老与睡眠之间的双向关系，这要求我们从不同的角度研究这个问题。而当地的生物钟时钟扰乱了生物钟的节律，也导致了老年人的睡眠障碍。值得注意的是衰老与睡眠之间的双向关系，这要求我们从不同的角度研究这个问题。