Background: Evening technology use (ETU) has been associated with sleep disturbances, often attributed to blue light exposure and cognitive arousal. However, most of the existing evidence focuses on younger populations and relies primarily on subjective measures. As older adults increasingly engage with both passive and active technology use, it is important to investigate how ETU impacts objective sleep. Currently, there is also a limited understanding of how particular evening digital activities, especially active versus passive engagement, affect objective sleep in older adults.

Objective: This study aims to investigate the impact of exposure to ETU on both objective and subjective sleep outcomes in older adults.

Methods: This is a randomized crossover trial involving approximately 55 adults aged 60-75 years from the ongoing Swedish National Study on Aging and Care-Blekinge. Each participant will undergo 3 one-week intervention periods: active ETU, passive ETU, and a nondigital activity (book reading), with one-week washout periods in between. The order of interventions will be randomized. Sleep will be assessed using a home-based electroencephalography device (MUSE headband) and daily self-reports. Primary outcomes are sleep onset latency and wake after sleep onset. Secondary outcomes include objective measures such as total sleep time, sleep efficiency, and time spent in REM, deep, and light sleep, subjective sleep quality, adherence, and perception of the intervention and comfort of using the objective measurement tool, that is, the electroencephalography headband. Linear mixed-effects models (with fixed effects for condition and period and a random participant intercept) were used to analyze crossover effects on sleep outcomes.

Results: Participant recruitment and data collection began in the fall of 2025 and will continue through summer 2026 or until the target sample size is reached. Data collection is scheduled to be completed by spring 2027. Results will include participant flow, baseline characteristics, adherence data, and comparative analyses of the 3 intervention conditions. Within-subject statistical models will be used to evaluate differences in sleep outcomes and investigate the associations between ETU and sleep quality.

Conclusions: This crossover study will clarify how active and passive ETU, compared with a nondigital activity, relate to objective sleep in older adults. Findings will inform simple, practical recommendations for technology use before bed in late life. 

Background

As we age, staying physically active and reducing sedentary behavior becomes crucial. To understand how to achieve this, factors related to daily physical function such as five-time sit-to-stand (STS) time should be explored. This study aimed to investigate the associations between STS time, self-rated physical activity, physical function, health-related quality of life, physical and mental health in community-dwelling older adults aged >= 60 years.

Method

Cross-sectional design with self-reported and objectively measured data from adults aged >= 60 years (n = 819), acquired from the Swedish National Study on Aging and Care. Data was analyzed through multiple linear regression.

Results

The model (R-2 = 0.268) showed that STS time was predicted by grip strength (beta' = -0.204, p < 0.05), age (beta' = 0.202, p < 0.05), health-related quality of life (beta' = -0.192, p < 0.05), having fallen within the preceding twelve months (beta' = -0.127, p < 0.05), physical activities of perceived light to moderate intensity (beta' = -0.121, p < 0.05), one-leg stand (beta' = -0.099, p < 0.05), and education level (beta' = -0.092, p < 0.05). For STS time, health-related quality of life (beta = -0.354, confidence interval [CI] (-0.509)-(-0.199)), having fallen within the preceding twelve months (beta = -0.222, CI (-0.365)-(-0.078)), and physical activities of perceived light to moderate intensity (beta = -0.166, CI (-0.278)-(-0.053)) were the most prominent predictors.

Conclusion

The model highlights the importance of grip strength and health-related quality of life in predicting STS time in older adults. Clinicians can use these insights to develop interventions that maintain physical function by regularly assessing and monitoring these factors. Future research should explore the relationship between fall history, faster STS time, and the impact of grip strength and health-related quality of life on sedentary behavior among older adults.

Background: Sleep disorders such as insomnia greatly affect individual well-being and are strongly associated with cardiovascular disease and individuals over the age of 60. Untreated and long-term sleep disorders can lead to several common health problems related to metabolic changes, thereby contributing to premature death. Aging as a process is associated with an increased prevalence of sleep disorders, as normal aging naturally entails changes in sleep patterns. At the same time, life changes are a major risk factor for sleep disorders. Several such changes can be identified among individuals over 60 years of age, including retirement, illness, and loss of close relatives. Sleep disorders may both worsen and arise from such factors. For individuals over 60, illness is often the cause of insomnia.

Aim: The aim was to describe the prevalence of insomnia among individuals aged 60+ living at home with cardiovascular disease in SNAC-B.

Method: The study was a descriptive cross-sectional study with a quantitative approach, based on data from the Swedish National Study of Care in Blekinge (SNAC-B).

Results: The study showed a statistically significant difference between insomnia and heart failure (p=0.005), between sex and insomnia (p<0.001), and between age categories and insomnia (p<0.001). However, no statistically significant difference was found between cardiovascular disease in general and insomnia (p=0.069).

Conclusion: Insomnia was found to be a common and frequently occurring problem among individuals over 60 years of age, both with and without cardiovascular disease. Women were overrepresented among those reporting insomnia regardless of the presence of cardiovascular disease, and individuals with heart failure were identified as the group with the highest prevalence of insomnia.