Summary: A study reveals that maintaining a consistent daily routine can significantly reduce physical pain and ease symptoms of depression, offering a accessible strategy for improving overall quality of life, particularly among older adults with insomnia.
The research evaluated survey data from older adults with and without insomnia to examine how behavioral and social rhythms influence overall health. The findings demonstrate that adhering to regular daily schedules for waking, eating, working, social interactions, and sleeping helps synchronize the body’s circadian rhythm. This stabilizing effect on health outcomes occurs regardless of an individual’s underlying sleep quality.
Key Facts
- Prevalence of Geriatric Insomnia: Approximately 50% of adults aged 60 and older report experiencing insomnia symptoms, according to data from the National Council on Aging.
- Pain and Depression Link: Study participants with insomnia reported significantly higher baseline levels of physical pain and depressive symptoms compared to good sleepers.
- Routine as an Independent Buffer: Regardless of sleep quality, participants who maintained consistent daily behavioral schedules experienced lower physical pain and reduced depression compared to those with irregular routines.
- Circadian Clock Synchronization: Regular time cues from consistent daily activities help align the internal 24-hour circadian clock, mitigating biological dysfunction associated with daily schedule disruptions.
- Mitigating Social Jet Lag: Maintaining identical wake, meal, and sleep times across both weekdays and weekends reduces social jet lag, helping stabilize circadian function across the lifespan.
Source: University of Missouri
University of Missouri researchers have identified a simple, effective way to improve quality of life. A new study found that maintaining a consistent daily routine can reduce physical pain and ease symptoms of depression, demonstrating how everyday habits can have a meaningful impact on well-being, particularly for older adults with insomnia.
Roughly half of adults age 60 and older report experiencing insomnia symptoms, according to the National Council on Aging. To better understand how insomnia affects overall well-being, Eunjin Tracy, an assistant professor in the College of Education and Human Development, analyzed survey data from 67 older adults, including 37 people with insomnia.
As expected, participants with insomnia reported higher levels of pain and depression. Tracy also found that participants who maintained consistent daily routines tended to report lower levels of pain and depression, a relationship she believes may be explained in part by the way regular schedules help synchronize the body’s internal clock.
“Regardless of sleep quality, those who reported having a regular daily routine had lower levels of physical pain and less depression compared to those without a daily routine,” Tracy said. “If we are consistent with when we wake up, eat, work or study, interact with others and go to bed, those time cues help synchronize our internal body clocks. Over the long term, that seems to be linked with improved health outcomes.”
Those daily habits help regulate the body’s circadian rhythm, its internal 24-hour clock that influences sleep, mood and other biological functions.
“When we regulate our circadian rhythm well, our bodies function well, but if it gets too distracted, our bodies don’t function as well,” Tracy said.
Even small disruptions to daily schedules can throw off the body’s internal clock, a phenomenon sometimes referred to as social jet lag. Tracy said maintaining a consistent routine throughout the week can help minimize those disruptions.
“As someone who wakes up and goes to bed at the same time every day, I think a daily routine can be helpful for people of all ages across their lifespan,” Tracy said.
“There is growing awareness about the concept of social jet lag — waking up and going to bed at different times on weekends compared to weekdays — and the disruptions it causes to our circadian rhythm, so hopefully this research helps more people consider the health benefits of a daily routine. Since one-third of our lives will be spent sleeping, I think health and well-being research should be looked at holistically from a 24-hour perspective and not just focus on when we are awake.”
“Behavioral-social rhythms and insomnia symptoms: associations with pain, body mass index, and depressive symptoms among older adults” was published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine.
Key Questions Answered:
A: Daily activities like waking, eating, working, and social interactions serve as external time cues (zeitgebers) that synchronize the body’s internal 24-hour circadian clock. A well-regulated circadian rhythm optimizes biological and neuroendocrine functions, which helps suppress pain sensitivity and stabilize mood regulation.
A: No. The study found that regardless of underlying sleep quality, individuals who kept a consistent daily schedule reported lower levels of physical pain and depression than those with unpredictable routines. Regular habits provide protective health benefits even when sleep is disrupted.
A: Social jet lag occurs when there is a mismatch between an individual’s biological clock and their social schedule, such as waking up and sleeping at drastically different times on weekends compared to weekdays. Keeping a uniform schedule throughout the entire week prevents these small disruptions from throwing off the body’s circadian alignment.
Editorial Notes:
- This article was edited by a Neuroscience News editor.
- Journal paper reviewed in full.
- Additional context added by our staff.
About this pain and depression research news
Author: Brian Consiglio
Source: University of Missouri-Columbia
Contact: Brian Consiglio – University of Missouri-Columbia
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“Behavioral-social rhythms and insomnia symptoms: associations with pain, body mass index, and depressive symptoms among older adults” by Eunjin Lee Tracy, Christine J. So, Brian Chin, Yuxi Xie, H. Matthew Lehrer, Jill A. Kanaley, Brant P. Hasler & Daniel J. Buysse. Journal of Behavioral Medicine
DOI:10.1007/s10865-026-00646-6
Abstract
Behavioral-social rhythms and insomnia symptoms: associations with pain, body mass index, and depressive symptoms among older adults
Regular timing of daily activities, like sleeping, eating, and engaging social interactions, may synchronize internal circadian rhythms with the 24-h light–dark cycle, improving health problems among older adults. Insomnia is highly prevalent among older adults and associated with deleterious health effects, including pain, increased body mass index (BMI), and depression.
However, little attention has been paid to the impact of behavioral-social rhythms on health, or how they, in combination with insomnia, affect the health of older adults.
This study examined: (1) whether behavioral-social rhythms, pain, BMI, and depressive symptoms differ between older adults with and without insomnia; (2) associations between behavioral-social rhythms and these health outcomes; and (3) whether insomnia status moderates these relationships.
Participants (Mage: 68.3 years) included 37 older adults with insomnia and 30 good sleepers. Behavioral-social rhythms, BMI, depressive symptoms, and pain were measured via self-report. Independent t-tests and hierarchical regression modeling were used to address the research questions.
Both groups exhibited similar behavioral-social rhythms (t(65) = − 0.11, p = 0.46) and BMI (t(64) = − 0.21, p = 0.83). However, those with insomnia experienced more pain (t(65) = − 2.01, p = 0.049) and depressive symptoms (t(65) = 7.35, p < 0.001).
More regular behavioral-social rhythms were linked to lower BMI (b = − 1.60, SE = 0.70, p = 0.03), reduced pain (b = 5.84, SE = 2.68, p = 0.03), and fewer depressive symptoms (b = − 0.68, SE = 0.29, p = 0.02), regardless of insomnia status.
The results suggest that greater behavioral-social rhythm regularity is associated with more favorable health outcomes and may represent a promising target for educational and interventional strategies for older adults, irrespective of insomnia status.
