The Effect of Zinc Supplement on Sleep Quality of the Elderly: A Randomized Clinical Trial Study

Zinc Supplement on Sleep Quality of the Elderly

  • Abolfazl Afzali Student Research Committee, School of Nursing & Midwifery, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran.
  • Lili Mohandes Mojarrad Department of Medical Education, Kashan University of Medical Sciences, Kashan, Iran.
  • Shahrbanoo Goli Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of public Health, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran.
  • Hossein Bagheri Department of Nursing, School of Nursing & Midwifery, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran.
  • Seyedmohammad Mirhosseini Student Research Committee, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran.
  • Hossein Ebrahimi Center for Health Related Social and Behavioral Sciences Research, Shahroud University of Medical Sciences, Shahroud, Iran.
Keywords: Complementary Medicine, Elder, Sleep Quality, Zinc

Abstract


The use of macronutrient and micronutrient foods is associated with the duration of sleep. This study aimed at determining the effect of zinc supplements on the sleep quality of the elderly. A parallel randomized clinical trial was designed in which 150 elderly who met the inclusion criteria were assigned to intervention and control groups. The elderly in the intervention group received a daily dose of 30 mg zinc supplementation pill for 70 days and the elderly in the control group did not receive any supplement. Sleep quality of the elderly was measured using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) questionnaire. Serum zinc level in both groups was measured through the auto-analysis method. The questionnaire was completed and the serum level of zinc was measured twice, before the intervention and 70 days after the intervention. Both groups were homogeneous in terms of demographic variables, sleep quality, and serum zinc level before the intervention. Of all, 73.3% of the elderly in the intervention group and 74.7% of the elderly in the control group had poor sleep quality. Sleep quality of the elderly in the intervention group, as compared with the control group, significantly improved after the intervention. Furthermore, serum zinc levels in the elderly in the intervention group, as compared with the control group, significantly increased after the intervention. Base on the results of this study it is recommended to utilize zinc supplementation as a new therapeutic approach for improving sleep quality in the elderly.

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Published
2025/12/21
Section
Originalni rad / Original article