Today, around 800,000 people suffer from Alzheimer’s in Spain, this being the most common way of dementia, although it is estimated that 80 percent of the cases of this disease, even in its slightest phase, are Without diagnosing. To date, the relationship between mental health and night sleep was scientifically found, which can give many clues about the risk of certain Diseases related to our brain.
A new study by the University of California, (San Francisco, United States) shows that a possible sign of dementia and Alzheimer could be the one that makes us feel stunned when we get updespite having slept the necessary hours: those that enter the REM phase of the dream later have a greater chance of developing dementia in the future.
This is the relationship between the REM phase of sleep and dementia
According to the research of the University of California, the participants who took longer to enter the ReM sleep phase (rapid eye movements) They had an increased risk of developing dementia. Those who take a longer time to enter the ReM sleep phase may be having an early sign of Alzheimer’s.
The REM is the last and deepest of the four phases of sleep, as well as the phase in which the brain processes memories. The elderly take longer to enter the REM phase of the dream in general, and the study has discovered that the participants who had Alzheimer’s disease took more than double (193 minutes on average in front of 90 minutes for cognitively healthy participants) In entering the ReM.
The participants who had a late entry in the REM Dream also showed higher levels of amyloid and TAU proteins (16 and 29 percent respectively), who are common in people with Alzheimer’s, than those who began the REM dream in the normal range of 90 minutes. Those with the latest remo Healthy protein that decreases in people with dementia.
Night rest and brain health
“Sleep delay alters the ability of the brain to consolidate memoriesby interfering with the process that contributes to learning and memory, “begins explaining Dr. Yue Leng, co -author of the study and associate teacher of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences of the University.” If the REM Dream is insufficient or delayed, it can increase the stress hormone (cortisol). This could damage the brain hippocampus, a fundamental structure for the consolidation of memory. “
Cortisol peaks can cause sleep disorders, which causes Dream delays to become a vicious circle. And, other studies have shown that sleeping well at night helps Avoid depression, which is one of the risk factors of dementia.
“Dementia can alter the Natural Sleep-Vigilia cycle of the brain, which is the ‘internal clock’ that tells the body when you should feel awake and when you should go to sleep,” explains Dr. Meredith Bock, neurologist and medical director of Remo Health to Parade. “When a person lives with dementia, chemistry and brain networks change.” The problem is aggravated by humor changes and anxiety that people can feel with dementia: these conditions can make relaxation and sleep difficult.
How to improve our sleep phases to avoid dementia?
Dr. Leng considers that we can take some measures to protect our brain health reinforcing the REM phase of the sleep. “We can avoid alcohol at night, which affects the sleep cycle; verifying that we do not suffer from sleep that affects night breathing; and review with our doctor the medication we are taking and that in some cases it could interfere in rest.”
Monitoring thyroid is also a good idea, as well as maintaining fixed schedules to rest. Finally, some supplements (melanin, for example) could help To make that remote phase deeper, although it must always be agreed with the doctor, because self -medication can cause the opposite phenomenon to the one we intend.
References
Suzanne Leigh. ‘Delayed Rem Sleep Could Be an Early Sign of Alzheimer’s’. University of California San Francisco. Consulted online February 17, 2025.
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