Daytime sleep increases dementia risk: Hyderabad neurologist warns
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New Delhi: Sleeping during day time instead of a healthy sleep at night could increase the risk of dementia, says a Hyderabad-based neurologist.
Dr. Sudhir Kumar, in a post on X.com said that daytime sleep does not align with the body’s clock and is lighter, increasing the risk of dementia and other psychiatric disorders, NDTV reported.
Many who are burning midnight oil and compensating the sleep deficit by sleeping through the day time are harming their bodies.
Dr. Kumar, who is a neurologist at Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals reportedly said: ‘Daytime sleep is lighter, since it is not aligned with the circadian clock, and hence fails to fulfill the homeostatic function of sleep.’
Stressing on the importance of nighttime sleep, Dr Kumar said that numerous studies on night shift workers showed they are ‘predisposed to stress, obesity, cognitive deficits, and an elevated risk of neurodegenerative diseases.’
The risk, according to the doctor, stems from the failure in brain’s glymphatic system due to poor sleep.
The glymphatic system, which is very active during sleep, help clearing the brain of protein waste products.
‘Glymphatic failure as the common pathway of dementia. Suppression or failure of the glymphatic system results in accumulation of abnormal proteins in various parts of the brain, leading to many neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer's disease (AD)," Dr Sudhir was quoted as saying.
Other factors, besides poor sleep quality, contributing to the failure of the glymphatic system are age, sedentary lifestyle, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, sleep apnoea, circadian misalignment, substance abuse, and depression.
"Good sleepers live longer, weigh less, have a reduced incidence of psychiatric disorders, and remain cognitively intact longer," the neurologist reportedly said.
He added that having regular good sleep at night will help with better cognitive function as well as reducing the risk of dementia and psychiatric problems.