People who have one more dream interrupted between 30 and 40 years They may be more likely to have memory and thinking problems a decade later, according to new research published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
However, the study does not show that sleep quality causes cognitive impairment, only shows an association. “As signs of Alzheimer’s disease begin to accumulate in the brain several decades before symptoms appear, “Understanding the connection between sleep and cognition early in life is critical to understanding the role of sleep problems as a risk factor for the disease,” said study author Yue Leng of the University of California. in San Francisco.
“Our findings indicate that the Quality, rather than quantity, of sleep is what matters most for cognitive health in middle age,” added the researcher.
526 people with an average age of 40 years participated in the study, who underwent a follow-up for 11 years. The researchers analyzed the duration and quality of sleep of the participants, who wore an activity monitor on their wrist. during three days consecutively on two occasions approximately one year apart to calculate their averages. These data revealed that the participants slept an average of six hours.
Additionally, they also reported their bedtime and wake times in a sleep diary and completed a survey on sleep quality with scores that went from zero to 21; higher scores indicated poorer sleep quality. A total of 239 people, or 46 percent, reported poor sleep with a score greater than five.