News and Insights
Sleep and Healthy Ageing: Challenging Myths and Addressing Workplace Impact
January 16, 2026
We are collectively missing out on an entire night’s sleep every week, with 16% of adults getting less than six hours per night. But some of the most widely held beliefs about sleep and ageing may be completely wrong—and the implications for workplace wellbeing and healthy longevity are profound.
These were among the key insights from a recent International Longevity Centre (ILC) webinar, “Sweet Dreams: The Importance of Good Sleep for Healthy Ageing,” chaired by FINN Partners’ Managing Partner Mark Chataway. The session brought together leading sleep scientists, workplace health experts, and policy advocates to challenge misconceptions and identify practical solutions.
It’s Young People Who Are Sleepy, Not Older Adults
Professor Derk-Jan Dijk, Director of the University of Surrey Sleep Research Centre, opened with findings that overturn common assumptions about ageing and sleepiness. Using both self-reported data and objective sleep tests, his research demonstrates that young people aged 20-29 are actually the sleepiest age group, not older adults.
“If you have to choose between a young or an old driver on a bus for your children on a trip to France, never choose the young driver, because the young driver is likely to fall asleep,” Professor Dijk noted, citing data showing younger people drop off to sleep within 10 minutes during daytime tests, while those aged 60-84 take much longer.
The message for older adults is clear: if you’re feeling excessively sleepy during the day, it’s not a normal part of ageing—it may signal an underlying health problem that deserves attention.
Professor Dijk also challenged the universal prescription for eight hours of sleep. His research shows that maximum sleep capacity declines with age—younger people can sleep up to 8.9 hours when given the opportunity, while older adults’ capacity is closer to 7.4 hours. “People get obsessed with getting their eight hours of sleep, but if the maximum capacity is only seven hours, they’re going to lie awake in bed, and they’re going to be frustrated,” he explained.
When it comes to what makes us feel rested, his laboratory research found that REM sleep and sleep continuity matter more than deep sleep for perceived sleep quality—a finding that challenges much of the popular wellness discourse around sleep.
Beyond Personal Responsibility: Workplace Factors Matter
With 8.7 million people in the UK regularly working evenings, early mornings, or overnight, the impact on sleep—and consequently on health, relationships, and productivity—is substantial. Ben Lumley, Co-Head of Programme at Night Club, shifted the conversation from individual sleep hygiene to systemic workplace factors.
“We can’t keep putting the blame and onus of this challenge on individuals,” Lumley emphasised, highlighting how shift patterns, workplace culture, and the expectation of 24-hour availability create structural barriers to good sleep. Night Club’s research shows that 70% of people check their phones last thing before bed, often for work-related reasons.
However, working nights doesn’t condemn people to poor health outcomes. Lumley noted that shift workers who manage their sleep, diet, and exercise well can have lower health risks than day workers with mediocre lifestyle habits. Key workplace interventions include forward-rotating shift patterns, limiting extremely long shifts, and critically, leadership that doesn’t glorify exhaustion or constant availability.
Sleep as a Keystone Wellbeing Investment
Poor sleep costs the UK economy an estimated £40 billion annually in lost productivity, healthcare costs, and accidents. Yet sleep remains conspicuously absent from many workplace wellbeing programmes, which have historically focused on nutrition and exercise.
Yvonne Sonsino, ILC Trustee and former HR consulting partner, brought the discussion to workplace wellbeing strategy. Drawing on her own experience of functioning on four to five hours of sleep for decades, she now advocates for putting sleep “front and center” of wellbeing programs.
“Sleep disturbance is not just a private problem—it’s a lived and embodied experience that directly affects cognition, emotional regulation, metabolic health and long-term disease risk, all of which show up at work every single day,” Sonsino explained.
She emphasized that effective programs must acknowledge employees’ lived experience without stigma, address stress regulation rather than just offering sleep hygiene tips, and ensure leadership models healthy boundaries. Target groups requiring particular attention include healthcare workers, executives in high-cognitive-load roles, shift workers, and neurodivergent employees.
Alcohol: A False Friend to Sleep
While alcohol can help people fall asleep more quickly, it significantly disrupts sleep quality later in the night by reducing REM sleep, crucial for memory, mood, and cognitive function. Jessi Kullar, Senior Public Affairs Manager at Drinkaware, addressed the common misconception that alcohol aids sleep.
Drinkaware’s research reveals that poor sleep is the most common effect UK drinkers notice after drinking, with 30% reporting it, representing nearly 14 million people. Among those drinking above recommended guidelines, nearly half report poor sleep. Significantly, 16% of drinkers said poor sleep after drinking had motivated them to cut down.
A Call for Integrated Action
The webinar demonstrated that improving sleep outcomes at a population level requires action beyond individual lifestyle changes—from workplace regulations protecting rest time to addressing the culture of constant availability that pervades modern work life.
For FINN Partners, work such as this reflects our commitment to supporting organizations tackling society’s most pressing health challenges. Together, sleep scientists, workplace advocates, HR experts, and public health organizations can move discussions beyond awareness-raising. This ILC webinar is part of a continuing effort to identify concrete opportunities for systemic change that can improve health outcomes and longevity across populations.
FINN Partners works with leading health organisations to develop strategic communications that drive policy change and improve health outcomes. Our Health practice brings together expertise in public affairs, stakeholder engagement, and evidence-based advocacy. To learn more about our work in health communications, contact us.
POSTED BY: Mark Chataway
