Posted on 03/18/2025 3:56:00 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
Poor sleep among older adults is linked to disruptions in the brain's "waste removal system," according to researchers. A recent study offers valuable insight into how sleep quality impacts brain functioning.
Many studies have linked poor sleep with a decline in brain functioning. Professor Lee's team focused on the glial-lymphatic (glymphatic) system, a fluid transport pathway that plays a vital role in clearing waste from the brain. The system's efficiency is a critical determinant of brain health, particularly in aging populations.
Professor Lee and her team sought to understand the glymphatic-brain relationship in poor sleepers, which underlies memory decline. Dysfunction of the glymphatic system leads to the accumulation of toxic proteins, and this process has recently been implicated in several neurological disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.
"Sleep quality, brain activities, and glymphatic functioning are related. Understanding how sleep quality influences the glymphatic system and human brain networks offers valuable insight into the neurophysiological mechanisms underpinning age-related memory change," Professor Lee said.
The research team studied 72 older adults using functional MRI scans and sleep recordings. The findings indicate that poor sleep quality adversely affects normal brain function by deactivating the restorative glymphatic system.
"The results clearly reveal the effect of sleep on the human brain's network through the glymphatic system, which in turn affects memory performance in older adults," said Professor Lee. "Therefore, maintaining efficient glymphatic functioning seems crucial for promoting healthy aging."
The results of the study add important evidence that sleep quality affects cognitive health through the underlying neural relationships. "Impaired memory is a common complaint among older adults with poor sleep quality," Professor Lee noted. "Our results provide a novel perspective on the interplay between sleep, the glymphatic system and multimodal brain networks."
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
Guess I’m screwed
Any memory of the stupid stuff liberals said the previous day is “waste”.
And coffee and butter is bad for you, no wait, never mind....
Maybe this is what’s wrong with my brain. seems like it’s getting more frequent as i get older that people tell me I’m full of crap after I post my opinions. maybe it’s true.
The great thing about being 80....is...you can con your way out of any situation...and laugh about it....
Jim, that happens to me, so we are either both not getting enough good sleep, or everyone who says those things to us is wrong.
It is also possible we need more sleep AND those people are wrong.
I already know you aren’t wrong, so it must be those people.
😁
People I know who indulge in long nights and daytime naps are the ones who have flaked out the earliest.
People I know who refuse to nap have had sharp brains to the end — in their 90s.
But I’m not scientist.
“as i get older that people tell me I’m full of crap”
Do they call you “sh!t-for-brains”? ;-)
What do they mean by ‘poor sleep’ - do they mean uninterrupted, or do they mean being able to go through the whole sleep cycle?
Same here. 70’s and plagued with poor sleep. Tried all the usual suggestions and supplements. Few work at all and those that do to some noticeable degree lose effectiveness quickly.
As one gets older, the call of the can comes more often night after night. Sleep is lost.
That and restless legs for me.
I do not have a problem going to sleep,
but I wake up about every 3 hours to go pee,
and then I go right back to sleep.
Sort of an analog to a C++ garbage collector when class instances go out of scope..
You’re thinking of Java. AFAIK C++ doesn’t do garbage collection.
i can believe that- They used ot say that benadryl was the cause of Alzheimer’s, but docs now think it’s not the Alzheimer’s but rather the fact that folks aren’t sleeping well- they turn to benadryl because their docs won’t prescribe sleep meds- but they still don’t sleep well- and when i say they don’t sleep well- they get barely 3-4 hours sleep a night- some nights less- some nights a little more- soem relatives get very little sleep- i don’t know how they even function- but they just keep going- I’m starting to have trouble myself- not fun!
that could be true- i have had to nap due to physical issue- likely Chronic fatigue- and my brain gets so exhausted- brain fog- it’s like trying to think through complex issues while having the flu where your brain just doesn’t want to work well- only all the time!
[[Tried all the usual suggestions and supplements. ]]
Yep- Same- Tried passionflower, melatonin, valerian, benadryl, and some others can’t think of right now- nothing but the benadryl worked and even that doesn’t work well-
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.