How Your Sleep Needs Change Over Time

By now, we all know that the quality and quantity of our sleep play a big factor in our health, mood and mental performance. To give you some good general guidelines on how much sleep you really need at every age, the National Sleep Foundation released the results of a study that took more than two years of research to complete. Here’s what they say:

How much sleep do babies need?

Babies are living the good life — and getting lots of much needed sleep! Newborns from zero to three months need between 14-17 hours of sleep each day. Of course, parents are familiar with the fact that at this age, babies aren’t sleeping for more than two to four hours at a time.

From four to eleven months, infants should get 12-15 hours of sleep. In this stage, babies start sleeping for longer periods of time and even sleeping through the night.

How much sleep do young children need?

Children between the ages of one and two years old need 11-14 hours of sleep each day, and preschoolers between three and five years of age need 10-13 hours of sleep. Generally, children under five take at least one nap during the course of the day to accrue extra sleep time.

School age children from six to thirteen years old should get 9-11 hours of sleep. At these ages, kids have more social and school activities and don’t usually have regularly scheduled naps. In fact, to give students the opportunity to get the amount of sleep they need, The American Academy of Pediatrics has recommended that middle and high schools start at 8:30 a.m. or later.

How much sleep do teenagers need?

Teenagers from fourteen to seventeen years old need 8-10 hours of sleep a day. And if you’re wondering why your teenager seems to be sleeping his or her weekends away, you might find that your teen is staying up late doing school work or spending time with friends during the week and trying to pay off sleep debt over the weekend.

How much sleep do adults need?

Adults ages eighteen to sixty-four years old should get 7-9 hours of sleep a day. Often, adults in this age range don’t have the opportunity to take naps, so those hours of sleep all happen at night. Which means it’s all the more important to get regular, quality sleep each night.

How much sleep do older adults need?

Adults over the age of sixty-four should get 7-8 hours of sleep a day. But while senior adults need as much sleep as younger adults, they often have a hard time getting enough quality sleep at night. Many older adults struggle with insomnia due to health issues, medication, or the need to get up and use the bathroom frequently.

No matter your age, getting enough sleep is vitally important to your overall health. And finding the right mattress can help with that. Check our list of best beds for every age or come visit one of our stores and talk to a sleep consultant.