STUDY Excessive sleep during the day can be an early sign of Alzheimer's disease

STUDY Excessive sleep during the day can be an early sign of Alzheimer’s disease

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The findings could help resolve the conflicting findings on the effects of sleep on cognition in older adults, with some previous studies highlighting the benefits of a nap on mood, alertness and mental performance.

The latest study suggests that an increase in the number of naps over time has been linked to a higher chance of developing mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer’s, according to The Guardian. –

Scientists believe that excessive sleep is more likely to be an early warning sign than to cause mental decline.

“It could be a sign of accelerated aging”, said Dr. Yue Leng, an assistant professor of psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco. “The bottom line is that if you are not used to taking a nap and you notice that you are starting to get more sleepy during the day, it could be a sign of declining cognitive health.

The results of the study

Scientists have been tracking more than 1,000 people, with an average age of 81, for several years. Each year, participants wore a clock-like device to track mobility for up to 14 days. Each prolonged period of inactivity between 9.00 and 19.00 was interpreted as sleep.

Participants also underwent tests each year to assess their cognition. At the start of the study, 76% of the participants had no cognitive impairment, 20% had a mild cognitive impairment, and 4% had Alzheimer’s disease.

In participants who did not develop cognitive impairment, daily sleep during the day increased by an average of 11 minutes per year. The growth rate doubled after a diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment, reaching a total of 24 minutes, and almost tripled, reaching a total of 68 minutes after a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, according to research published in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia .

In general, participants who slept more than an hour a day had a 40% higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s than those who slept less than an hour a day; and participants who fell asleep at least once a day had a 40% higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s than those who fell asleep less than once a day.

Previous research comparing postmortem brains has shown that Alzheimer’s sufferers have fewer specialist neurons that promote wakefulness.

Unusual patterns of sleep, insomnia, and poor night’s sleep are common in people with dementia, but recent research has shown that sleep-related sleep remains even when night’s sleep is considered. “This suggested that the role of sleep during the day is important in itself“Leng said.

The authors said that the feeling of drowsiness increasing during the day could be an early sign that changes are taking place in the brain that are the precursors of dementia.

Leng said that the possibility of sleep causing cognitive problems could not be ruled out, but that there was “no obvious biological mechanism by which sleep could cause Alzheimer’s.”

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