Sleep apnea, the difficulty some people experience breathing when they sleep, can cause changes in your brain.
According to a study published in ‘Neurology‘, these people may have a hippocampus largest, the area of the brain responsible for memory and thinking.
The study also found that those with lower oxygen levels during sleep had changes in the deeper parts of the brain, such as white matter, a common finding associated with the decline in brain health that occurs with age.
Sleep-disordered breathing encompasses a set of conditions that cause abnormal breathing during sleep, such as snoring and obstructive sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea occurs when a person stops breathing five or more times per hour. These breathing pauses can reduce oxygen levels, affecting the brain.
“Some studies have found that sleep problems and low oxygen levels during sleep are linked to brain shrinkage, while others have found a connection with brain growth,” says study author Alberto R. Ramos. of the University of Miami (USA.). «Both the shrinkage like growth brain can harm memory and thinking by disrupting normal brain functions, increasing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia.
At the start of the study, which included nearly 3,000 people, each participant took a home sleep test that measured how often they stopped breathing, known as apneas, and how often they had slow or shallow breathing, known as hypopneas.
Participants were divided into three groups: those with fewer than five sleep interruptions per hour (no sleep problems); those with five to 15 interruptions (mild problems); and those with more than 15 interruptions (moderate to severe problems). Of all participants, 56% had no sleep problems, 28% had mild problems, and 16% had moderate to severe problems.
Oxygen levels
Additionally, oxygen levels in the bloodstream during sleep were assessed.
Ten years later, brain volume and white matter hyperintensities, areas where brain tissue has been damaged, were measured using a scanner.
The study found that sleep problems are associated with increased hippocampal volume and an increase in white matter hyperintensities, highlighting that each sleep interruption and low oxygen levels during rest influence these brain changes.
“These findings highlight the complex relationships between sleep health and brain aging, and show the need for longer studies that follow people from middle age or even earlier,” says Ramos. “It is essential to clearly understand how brain volume is affected by sleep apnea and other sleep disorders so that people can receive early and effective treatment, especially those at higher risk of dementia.”
#Sleep #apnea #brain
