Experts say middle-aged people with sleep problems show more signs of brain health. Neuroscientists argue in a recently published study that there is a connection between the quality of our sleep and the condition of one of the most important organs of the human body.
An extensive study recently published in the journal Neurology, conducted by scientists affiliated with the American Academy of Neurology, spanned more than a decade. More than half a thousand people took part in it, whose average age at the beginning of the experiment was 40 years. Its purpose was to investigate the effect of sleep problems on the state of our brain.
“Our study, which used brain scans to determine the age of the participants' brains, shows that poor sleep is associated with about three additional years of brain aging already in middle age,” says Dr. Clemens Cavailes of the University of California, San Francisco. , San Francisco. .
Scientists emphasize that there is no evidence that poor sleep accelerates the aging process of the brain. However, their work shows how our sleep depends on its state.
How did the experience go?
A total of 589 people participated in the study and completed a questionnaire about their sleep quality before the start. Thanks to them, scientists identified six diseases: short sleep, poor sleep quality, sleep problems, difficulty maintaining sleep, early morning awakening and daytime sleepiness.
Later, the subjects were divided into three groups. Patients in the low group were struggling with one problem, in the middle group with two or three problems, and in the high group with more than three problems. At the beginning of the study, the majority of people, about 70 percent, belonged to the first group, 22 percent. to the second group and 8 percent to the last group.
Five years later, the participants filled out the same questionnaires again. After 15 years, scientists performed scans of their brains.
Effect of sleep quality on brain age
The experts analyzed the brain scans of the subjects for the degree of shrinkage – the level of which was appropriate for a particular age. Machine learning, one of the tools based on artificial intelligence, has also been used to determine the health status of this organ.
After taking into account other factors, such as age, gender, high blood pressure and diabetes, the researchers estimated that the brains of people in the middle group (with two or three diseases) were about 1.6 years older than in the low group. In the case of people of the third group, this difference was 2.6 years.
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The authors of the report listed the main causes of brain aging as: poor sleep quality, difficulty falling asleep, waking up early in the morning, and difficulty staying asleep. Their effects were most noticeable in people who had the disease for five years.
“Our findings highlight the importance of addressing sleep problems early in life to maintain brain health, including maintaining a consistent sleep schedule, exercising, avoiding caffeine and alcohol before bed, and using relaxation techniques,” said Christine Yaffe, MD. California in San Francisco.
The problem of poor sleep quality affects not only middle-aged people, but also young people. “Future research should focus on finding new ways to improve sleep quality and examine the long-term effects of sleep on brain health in young people,” Yaffe said.
American Academy of Neurology
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