New research by SunLife has discovered that more than two in five adults over the age of 50 cannot sleep at night because they are worrying about money, with the rising cost of living dominating the list of reasons for their restless minds.
The over-50s finance specialists surveyed 1,000 people of various ages across the UK about their sleep habits to find out what’s keeping people up at night. Over a third (37%) of people aged 50 and over revealed they feel sleep deprived.
Money worries are the number one cause of sleep loss for the age bracket, closely followed by relationship issues and work. The top three reasons in the overall list were dominated by cost of living issues and included energy bills (52%), food prices (37%) and having low disposable incomes (31%).
Commenting on the findings, Ian Atkinson, Chief Marketing Officer at SunLife, said: “Sleep is vital for our health and wellbeing, yet many people in the UK are suffering from some measure of sleep deprivation. We all know that we should aim for around seven to nine hours of sleep at night. But with inflation at a 40-year high, it’s clear that many people are feeling the pressure financially, and this is having a huge knock-on effect on our sleep.
“Our study shows that age plays an important role in our sleep habits. It’s important that we speak openly about our health challenges and get support in place sooner rather than later.”
14 money worries keeping people over 50 awake at night
- Energy bills - 52%
- Food prices - 37%
- Low disposable income - 31%
- Petrol prices - 27%
- Low savings - 24%
- House/rent prices - 23%
- Debt - 18%
- Something not listed - 16%
- Emergency costs - 16%
- Pension/retirement funds - 16%
- Money scams - 10%
- Spending habits - 8%
- Inheritance/funeral costs - 5%
- Care costs - 5%
Five ways to start getting a better sleep
If you're still struggling to sleep at night, the NHS recommends these practical tips to help you sleep.
- Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day
- Relax at least one hour before bed - for example, take a bath or read a book
- Make sure your bedroom is dark and quiet - use curtains, blinds, an eye mask or ear plugs if needed
- Exercise regularly during the day
- Make sure your mattress, pillows and covers are comfortable
If you are worried about the financial pressures caused by the cost of living crisis, seek help from a non-profit charity such as Citizens Advice, StepChange, Christians Against Poverty and Moneyhelper.
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