Lack of sleep has been linked to cognitive decline. Here's what people need to know to protect their brains, by SiliconPsychMD
researchers determined that older individuals, still “predominantly cognitively normal” but experiencing less slow-wave, non-REM sleep, have higher concentrations of tau in their brains. The authors noted such changes in sleep patterns might prove to be biomarkers for encroaching Alzheimer’s disease and allow for treatment intervention “either before or at the earliest stages of symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease.
But rather than focusing on the number of sleep hours, should we be more concerned about the quality of our sleep architecture? An individual will cycle through four to six sleep stages during a normal sleep period. But, as a person ages, more time is spent in lighter rather than deeper sleep. Does quality then override quantity if deep non-REM sleep–not the lighter stages– is needed for optimal functioning of the brain’s glymphatic waste-clearing system? Future studies may provide more answers.
Improve your sleep hygiene. Darken the room, lower the temperature, move the television out of the bedroom, put the mobile phone down an hour before bedtime and place or plug it where you cannot see it, and, if necessary, buy a new mattress.
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