Latest news with #sleepdisorders
BBC News
6 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Dementia: Sleep disorders increase risk of dementia, study finds
People who experience sleep disorders are at greater risk of developing neurodegenerative conditions, including dementia, new research has study, conducted by researchers at Cardiff University, found that diagnoses of sleep disorder made people up to twice as likely to develop a neurodegenerative disease in the 15 years that peer-reviewed study used data from more than a million electronic health records. "This increased risk was occurring independently of genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, with sleep disorders almost 'compensating' for low genetic risk," said Prof Valentina Escott-Price, from the UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff University. The researchers examined data from three biobanks – facilities that store biological samples and are used for health research – from which they were "able to obtain accurate, timestamped records of when people experienced sleep disorders".The team analysed those who had been diagnosed with one of more sleep disorder, grouping them into those associated with "circadian rhythm" – or body clock – such as sleepwalking and narcolepsy, and "non-organic" sleep disorders not linked to a known psychological condition, including generalised insomnia and key findings were:Circadian sleep disorders and non-organic sleep disorders were associated with an increased risk of dementia in the 10 to 15 years that followed. The risk was further increased for those with multiple sleep sleep disorders increased the risk of Alzheimer's in the 10 to 15 years following sleep disorder sleep disorders and non-organic sleep disorders increased the risk of vascular dementia in the 5 to 10 years following sleep disorder diagnosis. The risk was further increased for those with multiple sleep sleep disorders and non-organic sleep disorders increased risk of Parkinson's in the 10 to 15 years following sleep disorder Emily Simmonds, bioinformatician at the UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff University, said the study aimed to "understand the complicated relationship between sleep and dementia".She said: "People living with dementia often experience sleep problems, but there is not yet enough evidence to say for sure whether poor sleep increases risk of dementia."Our results are compelling, indicating a clear increased risk of neurodegenerative disease following a sleep disorder."Prof Escott-Price, also from Cardiff University, said that while further investigation is needed the research "points towards sleep disorders as a risk factor for these conditions".Future research will examine whether improving sleep through the use of medication leads to a reduction in risk.
Telegraph
7 days ago
- General
- Telegraph
Nightmares linked to higher dementia risk, study finds
People who have nightmares or sleepwalk are twice as likely to develop vascular dementia than those who sleep soundly, a study has found. Scientists have long known that serious sleep disorders increase the risk of neurodegenerative conditions, but the latest research has shed more light on the connection. Analysis of more than a million people's medical records has found individuals with sleep problems who have not been diagnosed with anything physically wrong are also at increased risk. So-called 'non-organic' sleep disorders which are not linked to a known physiological condition include night terrors, sleepwalking, nightmares, and forms of insomnia and hypersomnia. Sufferers from these disorders were found to be more than twice as likely to be diagnosed with vascular dementia in later life, and to be at 67 per cent higher risk of dementia and 68 per cent higher risk of Parkinson's disease. The study, led by Cardiff University, involved data from three biobanks containing the records of people in Britain and Finland. The research compared the subjects' sleeping patterns with their genes and their long-term health outcomes. 'By using biobank data, we had timestamped records of when people had sleep disorders, and exactly when they were subsequently diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease – rather than relying on self-reporting,' said Dr Emily Simmonds, one of the study authors and a bioinformatician at the UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff University. 'Our results are compelling, indicating a clear increased risk of neurodegenerative disease following a sleep disorder, across three large biobank datasets.' The scientists found people often experienced sleep disorder symptoms up to 15 years before they started seeing symptoms of the neurodegenerative conditions. Link to sleep problems could speed treatment Kristin Levine, a study co-author from the US National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Centre for Alzheimer's and Related Dementias, said: 'One of the exciting things about identifying people at higher risk of developing a neurodegenerative disease 10-15 years before diagnosis, is that it gives us time to implement treatments that may delay or prevent development of disease.' A link was seen between sleep problems and the neurodegenerative diseases even in people whose genes put them at low risk, the study authors found. 'Perhaps most interestingly, this increased risk was occurring independently of genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, with sleep disorders almost 'compensating' for low genetic risk,' said Hampton Leonard from the NIH Centre, the study's co-leader. 'One would expect that if sleep disorders were caused by neurodegeneration, genetic risk of sleep disorder and neurodegenerative disease would line up. Further investigation is needed, but this points towards sleep disorders as a risk factor for these conditions.' The scientists hope future research will build on their findings, and investigate if any interventions that target sleep problems can improve the outlook for neurodegenerative conditions.
Sky News
7 days ago
- General
- Sky News
Dementia: Sleep problems could 'double risk' of disease in later life
Problems sleeping could double the risk of developing dementia later in life, according to new research. Scientists have found that a diagnosis of a sleep disorder made people up to twice as likely to develop a neurodegenerative disease, such as dementia, in the following 15 years. The study, carried out by Cardiff University's UK Dementia Research Institute and the NIH Intramural Centre for Alzheimer's and Related Dementia (CARD) in the US, is one of the largest to date. Researchers investigated whether disrupted sleep is an early sign of neurodegeneration or makes someone more likely to develop dementia later. They used data from over one million electronic health records to map out the relationship between the different neurodegenerative diseases and sleep disorders. The risk of dementia was further increased for people recorded as experiencing multiple sleep disorders. The findings also revealed that sleep disorders increased the risk of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, irrespective of genetic risk. Sleep disorders and genetics are likely to be influencing the risk of diagnosis independently of each other, according to the study. Dr Emily Simmonds works as a bioinformatician at the UK Dementia Research Institute. She said scientists "wanted to understand the complicated relationship between sleep and dementia". "People living with dementia often experience sleep problems, but there is not yet enough evidence to say for sure whether poor sleep increases risk of dementia," she said. Dr Simmonds said the team "set out to see if we could figure out what order these things are happening". "By using biobank data, we had timestamped records of when people had sleep disorders, and exactly when they were subsequently diagnosed with a neurodegenerative disease - rather than relying on self-reporting," she added.
Health Line
19-05-2025
- Health
- Health Line
Is Insomnia Genetic?
Insomnia is a complicated condition with numerous causes and risk factors. Research has found that genetics may increase your likelihood of developing it. It's challenging to link insomnia with genetics because it's such a common condition. Approximately 25% of the U.S. population experiences insomnia each year. Still, various studies have explored this link and found that the heritability of insomnia ranges from 22% to 59% in adults. The average figure is 39%. Heritability measures how much the differences in people's genes account for differences in various traits. The higher the heritability, the more likely the variation in the population comes down to genetics. This article examines the possible link between insomnia and genetics, along with other risk factors and causes of insomnia. Which genes are associated with insomnia? Sleep is complex, so finding specific genes with links to insomnia is tricky. Even so, some scientists have attempted to find answers. A 2019 study —one of the biggest to focus on the topic so far — showed that 57 gene regions have links to symptoms of insomnia. Interestingly, these areas weren't involved in sleep regulation but linked with a process called ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis, which destroys specific proteins. However, some genes of interest that experts identified in other research related to neuronal excitability in the body implied that overactivating areas promoting awakening might contribute to or even cause insomnia. Can environmental factors affect your genes? Having genes linked to insomnia doesn't mean you will get the condition. Environmental factors can also affect which genes your body expresses —this is known as epigenetics. For example, stress, diet, temperature, and even the social life you lead may affect the way specific genes function, and therefore, affect your sleep. What else can cause insomnia? Of course, genetics and environmental factors aren't the only causes of insomnia. You can think of specific genes as factors that might make you more likely to get insomnia. Your sex assigned at birth may also fall into this category —people assigned female at birth can be more likely to have insomnia than people assigned male at birth. But other things can trigger insomnia and maintain it. For example, the following health conditions are also linked to insomnia: restless legs syndrome anxiety cardiovascular disease Emotional and physical stress can also make it difficult to sleep. Your sleeping environment and pre-sleep habits, such as the temperature or noise levels in your bedroom, meal schedules, and caffeine or drug intake, could also be behind your insomnia. Is it possible to reduce your risk of insomnia? If you are genetically predisposed to insomnia, you may need to be more aware of good sleep hygiene. Adopting a stable routine that involves going to sleep and waking up at roughly the same time each day may help. And when it's time for bed, try to relax beforehand by dimming the lights and turning off devices. You can also avoid caffeine, alcohol, and tobacco —particularly in the latter part of the day. Finally, embarking on a healthy lifestyle that involves adequate physical exercise and stress reduction techniques may help. Even if you do all of the above and more, it still may not be possible to prevent insomnia. How is insomnia treated? Practicing good sleep hygiene is a treatment method for insomnia and a prevention technique. You can try: turning your bedroom into a calming space by optimizing the lighting and temperature and turning off electronic devices going to sleep and waking up at the same time, even on weekends or if you've had a bad night's sleep avoiding stimulants, like caffeine, before bedtime exercising during the daytime to tire both your body and mind Some people may need medication to help them sleep. But sleeping pills can become less effective the more people take them, and they have a whole host of potential side effects. Speak with a doctor or another healthcare professional before buying over-the-counter sleeping aids. A special form of therapy called cognitive behavioral therapy for insomnia (CBT-I) is also an option and has been effective in multiple studies. While there is currently a limited number of practitioners offering CBT-I, it can help you swap unhelpful thoughts and actions that affect your sleep for more helpful ones that promote a restful night. Is insomnia curable? It can take time and may involve many approaches. But insomnia is curable in some cases. In other, more complex cases, you can try to improve it by treating underlying conditions and making certain lifestyle changes. The longer it goes on, the harder it is to treat. So, if you're having trouble sleeping, it's always best to contact a doctor as soon as possible.
Health Line
19-05-2025
- Health
- Health Line
How Long Does It Typically Take to Fall Asleep?
For most people most of the time, it takes 10 to 20 minutes to fall asleep. However, there are many reasons this might vary. It's bedtime. You settle into your bed, turn the lights off, and rest your head against the pillow. How many minutes later do you fall asleep? The normal time it takes most people to fall asleep at night is between 10 and 20 minutes. Of course, there are certain nights this time may be more or less, but if you fall asleep too quickly or if it takes beyond a half hour most nights to drift into dreamland, there may be an underlying issue to consider. What's normal? Healthy sleep is an essential part of life. Trying to establish a normal sleep pattern is critical to everyday functioning. Normal sleep for adults means that you fall asleep within 10 to 20 minutes and get about 7–8 hours a night. Children and adolescents need about 10 hours of sleep, and babies, toddlers, and preschool-aged children need even more. The time it takes you to fall asleep is known as sleep latency. If you fall asleep before or after the typical 10 or 20 minutes it generally takes, you may have an underlying sleep condition. One study found that your sleep quality will decrease if it takes you longer than a half hour to fall asleep. You may find that it's difficult to fall asleep once in a while — that's perfectly normal. Sometimes you may have difficulty turning your brain off because you're worried about something or because of an unusual event in your life. On the other hand, you may fall asleep instantaneously if you've had a difficult night of sleep the previous night or a particularly exhausting day. This isn't a cause for concern if it occurs occasionally. What if you can't fall asleep? There may be several reasons you can't fall asleep at night, including: a too-early bedtime a poor bedtime routine getting too much sleep an underlying sleep condition Circadian rhythm One reason you may not be able to fall asleep within the normal time frame is because you're trying to go to bed too early or because of external factors like jet lag. Your body has a natural biological, or circadian, rhythm. A biological rhythm is a 24-hour cycle that runs your body and indicates to you when it's time to sleep, wake, and eat, among other signals. Not everyone's clock is the same. Some people prefer to go to bed earlier and wake up earlier. Others may rev up in evening hours, becoming more productive as the evening passes. If you're more of a night person, your natural bedtime may be later and you may sleep later in the morning than the early bird. Sleep hygiene Another reason you may not be able to fall asleep after 10 or 20 minutes is because of a poor nighttime routine. You need to facilitate sleep for your body in the same way every night to achieve quality sleep. This includes: avoiding late exercise not drinking caffeinated beverages by a certain hour of the day (usually 6 hours before bed) powering down your screens a half hour or so before bed Making sure your bedtime stays relatively consistent is also key to quality sleep and falling asleep within the normal range. Getting too much sleep can make it difficult to fall asleep at night. Make sure you're aiming for 7 to 8 hours a night if you're an adult, and avoid taking late afternoon naps. Sleep disorder Another reason you may not be able to fall asleep is because of an underlying sleep condition like insomnia. Insomnia can occur randomly or because of other health conditions or medications you take. If you can't fall asleep within a half hour of turning off your light for the night on a regular basis, talk to your doctor. Your doctor may suggest helpful nighttime strategies or recommend that you undergo a sleep test to determine the severity and cause of the insomnia. Treatments for insomnia may include creating and adhering to better sleep habits. Your doctor may recommend certain medications for chronic insomnia. What if you fall asleep too fast? Falling asleep too soon may be another sign of sleep trouble. It may be a sign of sleep deprivation. Your body needs to average a certain amount of sleep each night, and if you cut yourself short of needed sleep, you may end up with sleep debt. This can result in feeling fuzzy, experiencing moodiness, and feeling tired. It can also lead to health conditions like high blood pressure and stress, as well as lower immunity to fight off colds and flu. To get more sleep, change your bedtime routine to accommodate for more hours of sleep. Or if you have to cut a few hours out one night, go to bed earlier or sleep in the next night if you can. When to see a doctor See a doctor if you notice that you frequently have trouble falling asleep or fall asleep very quickly each night. Consider keeping a sleep journal to track your sleep habits. This may be useful during a doctor's appointment to pinpoint your symptoms and any underlying causes for the sleep difficulty. The bottom line It should take between 10 and 20 minutes to fall asleep at bedtime. Some days, external factors like stress or worry may extend the time it takes you to fall asleep. Or you may be exhausted from lost sleep or not enough sleep and fall asleep much more quickly. To reach that normal window of time it takes to fall asleep, establish a healthy bedtime routine, make sure you get enough nightly sleep, and avoid practices that may keep you up at night.
