Whether it’s too little or poor quality, sleep disturbances and dementia risk are increasingly linked, and scientists are racing to find out the exact cause.
Sleep’s restorative properties are well known, and one of its roles is to clear the buildup of beta-amyloid plaques in the brain, one of the two most common hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease. There is also evidence drawing a line between the risk of dementia and problems such as sleep disturbance, short-term sleep deprivation, and long-term insomnia.
Now, a new study reveals even worse news for those who struggle to nod their heads at night or take medication to do so, but wake up in the middle of the night and It has also shown surprising results for restless sleepers.
“We had expected insomnia at sleep onset and use of sleeping pills to increase the risk of dementia, but we were surprised to find that insomnia during sleep maintenance decreased the risk of dementia. explained lead investigator Roger Wong, an assistant professor in the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine. SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse.
This study examined 10 annual waves of data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS) and provided a key longitudinal analysis that sheds light on cognitive decline over time. The data were collected from a nationally representative sample of 6,284 community-dwelling Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years and older and included only those without dementia in 2011. Approximately 13.6% of participants had a diagnosis of dementia during the time frame investigated.
Also, despite previous evidence linking poor sleep quality and sleep disturbances with dementia risk, our findings suggest that those with sleep maintenance insomnia (difficulty falling asleep again after waking) People were also less likely to develop dementia during this decade. monitoring. It’s unclear why, but researchers hope that further research into sleep disruption and overall sleep length will provide clues.
However, older adults who suffer from frequent sleep onset insomnia (inability to fall asleep within 30 minutes of turning off the light) or who use sleeping pills are at increased risk of dementia. I was.
“Our findings highlight the importance of considering a history of sleep disturbances when assessing the dementia risk profile of older adults,” said Wong. “Future studies will examine measures of other sleep disorders using national longitudinal samples to determine whether these sleep dementia findings apply to specific dementia subtypes and to specific sociodemographics.” We need to explore how physical characteristics may interact with sleep disturbances to influence dementia risk.”
This study of long-term sleep disorders is the first to use a nationally representative sample of older adults.and the high prevalence of sleep disorders among the elderly It underscores the importance of research focused on people at the forefront of cognitive decline compared to other age groups.
Margaret Anne Lovier, co-investigator at SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, explains:
“Older people lose sleep due to various worries,” Wong added. “Further research is needed to better understand its causes and symptoms and to limit its long-term effects.”
This research American Journal of Preventive Medicine.
Source: Elsevier
