Summary of Berkeley Research Shows Deep Sleep Alleviates Alzheimer’s, Memory Loss:
Deep sleep, also known as non-REM slow-wave sleep, may help protect against memory decline in older adults with high levels of Alzheimer’s disease pathology, according to sleep scientists from the University of California, Berkeley. The study found that higher levels of profound sleep act as a cognitive reserve factor, increasing resilience against beta-amyloid protein effects linked to memory loss. Good sleep hygiene, such as sticking to a regular sleep schedule, staying mentally and physically active during the day, and creating a cool and dark sleep environment, can offer benefits against Alzheimer’s pathology.
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Deep Sleep May Protect Against Memory Decline in Older Adults with Alzheimer’s Disease Pathology
Good sleep hygiene can offer benefits against Alzheimer’s pathology. UC Berkeley researchers have discovered that deep sleep, also known as non-REM slow-wave sleep, can act as a cognitive reserve factor against beta-amyloid protein, which is linked to memory loss caused by dementia. The study, published in BMC Medicine, suggests that higher levels of deep sleep can protect against memory decline in those with high levels of Alzheimer’s disease pathology.
Deep Sleep May Alleviate Dementia Outcomes
A deep slumber might help buffer against memory loss for older adults with Alzheimer’s disease, new research from UC Berkeley suggests. Scientists have probed the ways that deposits of beta-amyloid associate with Alzheimer’s disease and how such deposits also affect memory more generally. The team at UC Berkeley previously discovered that the declining amount of a person’s deep sleep could act as a “crystal ball” to forecast a faster rate of future beta-amyloid buildup in the brain, after which dementia is more likely to set in.
Cognitive Reserve and Sleep
Years of education, physical activity, and social engagement are widely believed to shore up a person’s resilience to severe brain pathology — essentially keeping the mind sharp, despite the decreased brain health. These are called cognitive reserve factors. However, most of them, such as past years of education or the size of one’s social network, cannot be easily changed or modified retroactively. That idea of cognitive reserve became a tempting target for sleep researchers who wondered if sleep might be a modifiable factor.
The Study
The researchers recruited 62 older adults from the Berkeley Aging Cohort Study. Participants, who were healthy adults not diagnosed with dementia, slept in a lab while researchers monitored their sleep waves with an electroencephalography (EEG) machine. Researchers also used a positron emission tomography (PET) scan to measure the amount of beta-amyloid deposits in the participants’ brains. Half of the participants had high beta-amyloid stakes, and the other half did not.
Results
After participants slept, the researchers found that those with high amounts of beta-amyloid deposits in their brains who also experienced higher levels of deep sleep performed better on a memory task involving matching names to faces than those with the same amount of deposits but who slept worse. In their analysis, the researchers went on to control for other cognitive reserve factors, including education and physical activity, and sleep still showed a significant benefit.
Implications
The authors suggest that sleep, independent of other factors, contributes to salvaging memory function in the face of brain pathology. Although the study had a small sample size of healthy participants, the early results indicate the importance of non-REM slow-wave sleep in counteracting some of the memory-impairing effects of beta-amyloid deposits. Sleep experts recommend sleeping regularly, staying mentally and physically active during the day, creating a cool and dark sleep environment, and minimizing coffee late and screen time before bed. Researchers said that a warm shower before turning in for the night has also been shown to increase the quality of deep, slow-wave sleep.
Conclusion
Deep sleep might help alleviate some of dementia’s most devastating outcomes. UC Berkeley sleep scientists have found that higher levels of deep sleep can act as a compensatory function against Alzheimer’s pathology, increasing resilience against the effects of beta-amyloid protein. By practicing good sleep hygiene, older adults may benefit from this compensatory function against Alzheimer’s pathology. Further research is necessary to understand better the precise ways sleep may forestall memory loss and the advance of Alzheimer’s.
