Dementia is a worldwide condition, affecting 50 million people globally. It is a syndrome in which a person’s memory, thinking, behavior, and everyday activities are impaired. It goes above and beyond the impairment associated with normal aging. Dementia and the mor specific Alzheimer Disease are a hot topic in scientific research. While the exact cause is unknown and there is no cure, scientists are making advances.
How is dementia different from Alzheimer’s Disease?
Dementia is the umbrella term that encompasses many diseases that cause a decline in cognition. Alzheimer’s Disease is a specific type of dementia. It gets worse with time and mainly affects memory at first, language, and then thought and abilities towards the end of the disease course.
There are other types of dementia. One is vascular dementia, a condition caused by damaged arteries and veins that then impede the blood flow to the brain. It causes similar symptoms as the other dementia types, but looks different on imaging.
Alzheimer’s and vascular are the two most common types of dementia. Many studies that research dementia overall look at both of them, or they examine Alzheimer’s specifically.
What is a risk factor for dementia?
Disturbed sleep is a major risk factor for developing dementia. One large research study examined both Alzheimer’s Disease and vascular dementia and the relationship to disordered sleep. Disordered sleep, or sleep disturbances, includes all different type of sleeping issues. This includes insomnia, or lack of sleep, sleep cycle disorders, and even difficulty breathing while sleeping.
Overall, the researchers looked at 246,786 people over about a 10-year period. They found that people who reported sleep disturbances had a higher risk of all dementia. Likewise, they found that sleep disordered breathing, like sleep apnea, increased the risk for all types of dementia. They also found that insomnia specifically increased the risk of Alzheimer’s Disease but not vascular or other types of dementia.
How do sleep disturbances relate to dementia?
Alzheimer’s Disease has been tied to a protein called tau. Tau can tangle up inside nerve cells and have been found in the brains of postmortem Alzheimer’s patients. Lea Grinberg, a neuropathologist at University of California, San Francisco, believes that these tau proteins play a large part in Alzheimer’s Disease and are related to sleep. Two areas of the brain, the hypothalamus and the brain stem, were found to be loaded with tau in Alzheimer’s patients. Multiple researchers have found that people with sleep disturbances had a faster and more potent spread of tau. Scientists are not exactly sure how tau may cause Alzheimer’s, but they believe the two are related.
How can I improve my sleep?
Many people suffer from a variety of sleep disturbances. It is important to first talk to a physician about the symptoms and how they may be related to other health disorders. For example, obstructive sleep apnea is a breathing disorder that causes disordered sleep, and the treatment generally involves a breathing mask.
One of the first steps in approaching disordered sleep is establishing appropriate sleep hygiene. Sleep hygiene refers to habits that allow for better sleep. While simple, they are effective if followed regularly. Some of the most common recommendations for good sleep hygiene are below:
- Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, even during the weekends.
- Sleep at least 7 hours, preferably 8 hours.
- Only use the bed for sleep and intimate activities.
- Keep the bedroom at a cool temperature and dim lighting.
- If one does not fall asleep after 20 minutes, get out of bed and leave the room.
- If one wakes up in the middle of the night, try to fall asleep for 20 minutes. If this fails, get up, leave the room, and only return when sleepy again.
- Turn off all electronic devices, including phones, TVs, and computers, at least 30 minutes before bedtime.
- Do not consume caffeine after early afternoon.
- Do not consume alcohol before bedtime
Alzheimer’s Disease and dementia overall are common diseases that can drastically change a person’s ability to perform their everyday activities. Scientists are actively researching the cause of these diseases in order to find a cure. They believe that dementia is related to sleep disturbances. Establishing strong sleep hygiene is important in order to develop good sleeping habits. Contact us at the Anti-Aging Wellness Clinic to learn more about other ways to reduce your risk for dementia.