Poor sleep quality may be one of many risk factors for suicide among the elderly, a research abstract to be presented today at the Annual Meeting of the Associated Professional Societies in Minneapolis suggests.

Researchers at Florida State University collected data from over 14,000 seniors over a 10-year period. They found disturbances in sleep to be one factor that could be used as a warning sign for suicide.

Affecting almost half of seniors, insomnia is the most common sleep complaint among adults. Experts recommend that seniors get seven to eight hours a sleep a night.